Matthew Appel Sells 9,000 Shares of EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) Stock

EZCORP, Inc. (NASDAQ:EZPW) Director Matthew Appel sold 9,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.03, for a total transaction of $153,270.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 142,409 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,425,225.27. This trade represents a 5.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

EZCORP Price Performance

NASDAQ EZPW opened at $16.79 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $15.11 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $14.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.12 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a current ratio of 6.31, a quick ratio of 5.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. EZCORP, Inc. has a 12-month low of $10.56 and a 12-month high of $17.26.

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The credit services provider reported $0.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by $0.10. EZCORP had a return on equity of 11.85% and a net margin of 7.96%.The firm had revenue of $310.98 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $302.25 million. Analysts forecast that EZCORP, Inc. will post 1.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

EZPW has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised EZCORP from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, June 14th. BTIG Research started coverage on shares of EZCORP in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $17.00 target price on shares of EZCORP in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $25.00 price target on shares of EZCORP in a report on Friday, August 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, EZCORP presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $18.50.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On EZCORP

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of EZPW. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in EZCORP by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,263,712 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $48,042,000 after acquiring an additional 9,968 shares during the period. Wasatch Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of EZCORP by 5.4% during the second quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 2,321,138 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $32,217,000 after purchasing an additional 118,641 shares during the last quarter. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC lifted its position in EZCORP by 18.4% during the fourth quarter. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC now owns 2,002,197 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $24,467,000 after purchasing an additional 310,706 shares during the period. Boston Partners boosted its holdings in EZCORP by 289.7% in the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,569,488 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $23,499,000 after purchasing an additional 1,166,758 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in EZCORP by 31.0% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,520,830 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $22,387,000 after purchasing an additional 359,543 shares during the last quarter. 99.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.