BTIG Research Initiates Coverage on EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW)

Investment analysts at BTIG Research initiated coverage on shares of EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm set a “neutral” rating on the credit services provider’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on EZPW. Roth Capital set a $16.00 price objective on EZCORP in a report on Monday, March 17th. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $13.50 target price on shares of EZCORP in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com raised EZCORP from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their target price on EZCORP from $25.00 to $24.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Roth Mkm began coverage on EZCORP in a research report on Monday, March 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $16.00 target price on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $17.38.

EZCORP Trading Down 2.1%

EZPW opened at $13.69 on Wednesday. EZCORP has a one year low of $9.66 and a one year high of $16.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $753.14 million, a PE ratio of 11.90 and a beta of 0.59. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $15.05 and its 200 day moving average price is $13.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 2.13 and a current ratio of 2.91.

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The credit services provider reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $310.35 million. As a group, equities research analysts expect that EZCORP will post 1.3 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of EZCORP

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Teza Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of EZCORP by 6.6% during the fourth quarter. Teza Capital Management LLC now owns 14,425 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $176,000 after acquiring an additional 896 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of EZCORP by 60.4% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,062 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $75,000 after acquiring an additional 1,906 shares during the period. Aigen Investment Management LP increased its position in shares of EZCORP by 11.8% during the fourth quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP now owns 19,800 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $242,000 after acquiring an additional 2,088 shares during the period. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of EZCORP by 16.9% during the first quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 18,874 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $278,000 after acquiring an additional 2,725 shares during the period. Finally, New York State Teachers Retirement System increased its position in shares of EZCORP by 4.3% during the first quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 80,099 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,179,000 after acquiring an additional 3,279 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.83% of the company’s stock.

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.