EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) Stock Rating Upgraded by Zacks Research

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) was upgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

EZPW has been the topic of several other research reports. Roth Mkm restated a “buy” rating and set a $26.00 price objective on shares of EZCORP in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $34.00 target price on shares of EZCORP in a report on Friday. Citigroup reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of EZCORP in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Wall Street Zen raised EZCORP from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of EZCORP in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, EZCORP currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $27.00.

EZCORP Trading Down 1.7%

Shares of EZPW stock opened at $24.74 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.86 and a beta of 0.53. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $21.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $18.63. The company has a quick ratio of 4.69, a current ratio of 6.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. EZCORP has a twelve month low of $12.85 and a twelve month high of $26.35.

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The credit services provider reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $374.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $363.63 million. EZCORP had a return on equity of 12.37% and a net margin of 9.18%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that EZCORP will post 1.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On EZCORP

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EZPW. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of EZCORP by 11.4% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,610,029 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $68,735,000 after acquiring an additional 369,817 shares during the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP raised its stake in EZCORP by 5.4% in the second quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 2,321,138 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $32,217,000 after purchasing an additional 118,641 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its position in EZCORP by 27.7% during the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,148,126 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $40,900,000 after purchasing an additional 465,462 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in EZCORP by 28.5% in the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,975,421 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $37,612,000 after buying an additional 437,601 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fourth Sail Capital LP grew its stake in EZCORP by 30.7% in the 2nd quarter. Fourth Sail Capital LP now owns 1,251,362 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $17,369,000 after buying an additional 294,100 shares in the last quarter. 99.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About EZCORP

EZCORP, Inc is a specialty consumer finance company that provides pawn loans and retail merchandise programs primarily through its EZPAWN and Cash Converters brands. The company offers collateral-based loans secured principally by jewelry, electronics, musical instruments and other personal items, alongside check-cashing, money-transfer and bill-payment services. In addition to its pawn lending operations, EZCORP acquires previously pawned or consumer merchandise for resale through its “Sell-It-Now” platform and retail storefronts.

Founded in 1989 and headquartered in San Antonio, Texas, EZCORP operates in two principal geographic markets: the United States and Mexico.