Roth Capital Upgrades EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) to “Strong-Buy”

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) was upgraded by analysts at Roth Capital to a “strong-buy” rating in a report issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on EZPW. Roth Mkm initiated coverage on EZCORP in a research report on Monday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $16.00 price target for the company. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price objective on EZCORP from $19.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $13.50 price target on shares of EZCORP in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $17.17.

EZCORP Price Performance

Shares of EZPW opened at $13.81 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $758.71 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.01 and a beta of 0.89. 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 has a one year low of $9.66 and a one year high of $14.50. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $12.97 and its 200-day moving average is $12.17.

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The credit services provider reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.07. EZCORP had a return on equity of 11.04% and a net margin of 7.25%. Equities analysts anticipate that EZCORP will post 1.3 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On EZCORP

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Divisadero Street Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of EZCORP by 1,699.2% during the fourth quarter. Divisadero Street Capital Management LP now owns 1,246,445 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $15,232,000 after buying an additional 1,177,166 shares during the last quarter. Philadelphia Financial Management of San Francisco LLC bought a new stake in shares of EZCORP during the third quarter valued at approximately $8,372,000. Invenomic Capital Management LP increased its position in shares of EZCORP by 317.1% during the fourth quarter. Invenomic Capital Management LP now owns 789,768 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $9,651,000 after purchasing an additional 600,435 shares during the period. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC grew its position in EZCORP by 18.4% in the fourth quarter. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC now owns 2,002,197 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $24,467,000 after acquiring an additional 310,706 shares during the period. Finally, Royce & Associates LP grew its position in EZCORP by 77.6% in the fourth quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 658,515 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $8,047,000 after acquiring an additional 287,818 shares during the period. 99.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About EZCORP

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.