Royal Bank of Canada Trims Holdings in EZCORP, Inc. $EZPW

Royal Bank of Canada trimmed its holdings in EZCORP, Inc. (NASDAQ:EZPW) by 11.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 137,523 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 17,271 shares during the quarter. Royal Bank of Canada’s holdings in EZCORP were worth $3,491,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in EZCORP by 50.6% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 457,861 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $11,621,000 after acquiring an additional 153,770 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new position in shares of EZCORP during the first quarter valued at approximately $247,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of EZCORP during the first quarter valued at approximately $249,000. Sei Investments Co. lifted its holdings in shares of EZCORP by 21.8% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 134,056 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,402,000 after purchasing an additional 24,016 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of EZCORP by 62.8% during the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 27,064 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $687,000 after purchasing an additional 10,445 shares during the last quarter. 99.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on EZPW shares. Citizens Jmp boosted their price target on EZCORP from $33.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Citigroup reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of EZCORP in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on EZCORP from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Roth Capital reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $40.00 target price on shares of EZCORP in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut EZCORP from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $38.80.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Pablo Lagos Espinosa sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.54, for a total value of $355,400.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 207,543 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,376,078.22. This represents a 4.60% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 2.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

EZCORP Stock Up 2.9%

Shares of EZCORP stock opened at $29.49 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $31.51 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $29.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.81 billion, a PE ratio of 14.89 and a beta of 0.66. EZCORP, Inc. has a 52-week low of $15.42 and a 52-week high of $37.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 3.45 and a current ratio of 4.81.

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

EZCORP Company Profile

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.