World Acceptance (NASDAQ:WRLD) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

World Acceptance (NASDAQ:WRLD) was downgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday.

World Acceptance Stock Performance

Shares of World Acceptance stock opened at $132.10 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 15.98 and a current ratio of 15.98. World Acceptance has a 1 year low of $94.57 and a 1 year high of $160.07. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $127.66 and its 200-day simple moving average is $131.16. The firm has a market cap of $772.12 million, a PE ratio of 9.96 and a beta of 1.38.

World Acceptance (NASDAQ:WRLD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The credit services provider reported $6.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.35 by $1.74. The business had revenue of $159.27 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $149.00 million. World Acceptance had a return on equity of 18.88% and a net margin of 13.49%. Equities analysts forecast that World Acceptance will post 13.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On World Acceptance

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WRLD. Quadrature Capital Ltd grew its stake in World Acceptance by 277.9% during the 4th quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd now owns 12,594 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,647,000 after buying an additional 9,261 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its position in World Acceptance by 80.9% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 3,988 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $521,000 after purchasing an additional 1,783 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in World Acceptance by 110.6% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 6,845 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $893,000 after purchasing an additional 3,595 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System grew its position in World Acceptance by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 7,361 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,067,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of World Acceptance by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 21,340 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,786,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares during the period. 83.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About World Acceptance

World Acceptance Corporation engages in consumer finance business in the United States. The company offers short-term small installment loans, medium-term larger installment loans, related credit insurance, and ancillary products and services to individuals. It also provides income tax return preparation and filing services; and automobile club memberships.