Canaccord Genuity Group Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) Stock

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) had its price objective lifted by Canaccord Genuity Group from $19.00 to $22.00 in a research report sent to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. Canaccord Genuity Group currently has a buy rating on the credit services provider’s stock.

Separately, Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $13.50 target price on shares of EZCORP in a report on Thursday.

EZCORP Price Performance

Shares of EZPW opened at $13.43 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.99, a current ratio of 2.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. EZCORP has a twelve month low of $9.65 and a twelve month high of $13.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $731.53 million, a P/E ratio of 11.68 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a 50 day moving average of $12.21 and a 200-day moving average of $11.73.

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The credit services provider reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.07. EZCORP had a net margin of 7.25% and a return on equity of 11.04%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that EZCORP will post 1.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Sunil Sajnani sold 34,493 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.42, for a total value of $428,403.06. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 66,242 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $822,725.64. This trade represents a 34.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CRO Nicole Swies sold 10,000 shares of EZCORP stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.47, for a total value of $124,700.00. Following the transaction, the executive now owns 101,813 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,269,608.11. This represents a 8.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.13% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On EZCORP

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of EZPW. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new position in EZCORP in the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of EZCORP by 97.0% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,156 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 1,554 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new position in shares of EZCORP in the third quarter valued at approximately $106,000. nVerses Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of EZCORP by 640.0% during the third quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 11,100 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $124,000 after purchasing an additional 9,600 shares during the period. Finally, Stephens Inc. AR acquired a new stake in EZCORP during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $138,000. 99.83% of the stock is owned by 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.