EZCORP, Inc. $EZPW Stock: Triasima Portfolio Management inc. Trims Stake

Triasima Portfolio Management inc. lessened its stake in EZCORP, Inc. (NASDAQ:EZPW) by 17.3% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 147,293 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 30,857 shares during the quarter. Triasima Portfolio Management inc.’s holdings in EZCORP were worth $4,383,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of EZPW. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC bought a new position in EZCORP in the 2nd quarter worth about $31,000. KBC Group NV purchased a new stake in EZCORP during the 1st quarter valued at about $44,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its position in EZCORP by 4,125.0% during the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 1,521 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 1,485 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake in EZCORP by 227.8% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,865 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 1,296 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GK Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in EZCORP during the 3rd quarter valued at about $86,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.83% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on EZPW shares. Zacks Research cut shares of EZCORP from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of EZCORP from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 2nd. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price target on shares of EZCORP from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of EZCORP from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of EZCORP from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $39.00.

EZCORP Stock Up 1.3%

EZCORP stock opened at $33.13 on Friday. EZCORP, Inc. has a 12 month low of $16.50 and a 12 month high of $37.13. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $31.25 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $31.42. The company has a current ratio of 4.81, a quick ratio of 3.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The firm has a market cap of $2.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.87 and a beta of 0.71.

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The credit services provider reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $408.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $425.83 million. EZCORP had a return on equity of 13.99% and a net margin of 9.97%. Equities analysts predict that EZCORP, Inc. will post 2.00 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Ellen Bryant sold 30,000 shares of EZCORP stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.77, for a total value of $1,043,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 117,786 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,095,419.22. This trade represents a 20.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 2.13% of the company’s stock.

About EZCORP

EZCORP, Inc is a financial services and retail company that operates pawn stores under brands including EZPAWN, Value Pawn and other regional names. Its stores provide short-term, collateral-based pawn loans to consumers who pledge personal property as security. Customers can generally reclaim pledged items by repaying the loan and applicable fees within the agreed term.

In addition to pawn lending, EZCORP generates revenue by selling pre-owned merchandise that has been forfeited or acquired through its stores.