Wall Street Zen Upgrades EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) to “Strong-Buy”

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) was upgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note issued on Saturday.

EZPW has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $17.00 price target on shares of EZCORP in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Roth Mkm started coverage on shares of EZCORP in a research report on Monday, March 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $16.00 target price on the stock. BTIG Research assumed coverage on shares of EZCORP in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their price target on shares of EZCORP from $25.00 to $24.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Roth Capital set a $16.00 price objective on shares of EZCORP in a report on Monday, March 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $18.25.

EZCORP Price Performance

Shares of EZPW opened at $13.17 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $14.58 and a two-hundred day moving average of $13.60. The company has a quick ratio of 2.13, a current ratio of 2.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. EZCORP has a twelve month low of $9.66 and a twelve month high of $16.60. The company has a market cap of $724.53 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.45 and a beta of 0.53.

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The credit services provider reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.02. EZCORP had a return on equity of 11.04% and a net margin of 7.25%. The firm had revenue of $306.32 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $310.35 million. As a group, analysts predict that EZCORP will post 1.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at EZCORP

In related news, COO John Blair Jr. Powell sold 42,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.55, for a total transaction of $618,375.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 189,483 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,756,977.65. This trade represents a 18.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 86,000 shares of company stock worth $1,220,010 over the last quarter. Insiders own 2.13% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On EZCORP

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EZPW. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of EZCORP by 60.4% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,062 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $75,000 after buying an additional 1,906 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI purchased a new position in EZCORP during the first quarter valued at approximately $91,000. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in EZCORP by 652.4% in the first quarter. Quarry LP now owns 7,637 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $112,000 after acquiring an additional 6,622 shares during the period. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new stake in EZCORP in the 4th quarter worth approximately $122,000. Finally, Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of EZCORP during the 4th quarter worth approximately $138,000. 99.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

EZCORP Company Profile

EZCORP, Inc provides pawn services in the United States and Latin America. The company operates through three segments: U.S. Pawn, Latin America Pawn, and Other Investments. The company offers pawn loans collateralized by tangible personal property, jewelry, consumer electronics, tools, sporting goods, and musical instruments.