Sei Investments Co. Buys 24,016 Shares of EZCORP, Inc. $EZPW

Sei Investments Co. raised its stake in EZCORP, Inc. (NASDAQ:EZPW) by 21.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 134,056 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 24,016 shares during the quarter. Sei Investments Co. owned 0.22% of EZCORP worth $3,402,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its position in shares of EZCORP by 47.5% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 3,167,748 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $61,518,000 after buying an additional 1,019,622 shares during the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd lifted its stake in EZCORP by 70.2% during the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 1,063,677 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $14,764,000 after acquiring an additional 438,542 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in EZCORP by 28.5% during the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,975,421 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $37,612,000 after acquiring an additional 437,601 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in EZCORP by 89.2% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 785,131 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $15,247,000 after acquiring an additional 370,103 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Penn Capital Management Company LLC boosted its holdings in EZCORP by 233.0% during the 4th quarter. Penn Capital Management Company LLC now owns 495,962 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $9,639,000 after acquiring an additional 347,021 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.83% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Pablo Lagos Espinosa sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.54, for a total transaction of $355,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 207,543 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,376,078.22. This represents a 4.60% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Jason A. Kulas sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.56, for a total transaction of $671,200.00. Following the sale, the director owned 172,948 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,804,134.88. The trade was a 10.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 40,000 shares of company stock worth $1,346,600. Insiders own 2.13% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (a-)” rating on shares of EZCORP in a report on Monday, July 6th. Zacks Research cut shares of EZCORP from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Citizens Jmp upped their price objective on shares of EZCORP from $33.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $44.00 price objective on shares of EZCORP in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of EZCORP from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday. One equities research 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $38.80.

EZCORP Trading Down 4.4%

Shares of EZCORP stock opened at $27.90 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $1.72 billion, a PE ratio of 14.09 and a beta of 0.66. EZCORP, Inc. has a 1 year low of $15.22 and a 1 year high of $37.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 4.81 and a quick ratio of 3.52. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $31.85 and a 200-day moving average price of $29.03.

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The credit services provider reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $408.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $425.83 million. EZCORP had a net margin of 9.97% and a return on equity of 13.99%. Equities research analysts anticipate that EZCORP, Inc. will post 2 EPS for the current year.

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.