James Investment Research Inc. Has $612,000 Position in EZCORP, Inc. $EZPW

James Investment Research Inc. increased its position in EZCORP, Inc. (NASDAQ:EZPW) by 14.3% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 44,113 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 5,505 shares during the period. James Investment Research Inc. owned 0.08% of EZCORP worth $612,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new position in EZCORP in the second quarter worth approximately $31,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in 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 purchasing an additional 1,906 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI bought a new stake in EZCORP during the first quarter worth approximately $91,000. Quarry LP boosted its position in EZCORP by 652.4% during the first quarter. Quarry LP now owns 7,637 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $112,000 after purchasing an additional 6,622 shares during the period. Finally, Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management bought a new stake in EZCORP during the second quarter worth approximately $139,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.83% of the company’s stock.

EZCORP Stock Down 1.4%

Shares of EZPW stock opened at $17.84 on Wednesday. EZCORP, Inc. has a 12 month low of $11.09 and a 12 month high of $19.44. The firm has a market cap of $1.09 billion, a PE ratio of 13.94 and a beta of 0.62. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $17.68 and a 200-day moving average of $15.51. The company has a quick ratio of 5.00, a current ratio of 6.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52.

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The credit services provider reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by $0.10. EZCORP had a return on equity of 11.85% and a net margin of 7.96%.The company had revenue of $310.98 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $302.25 million. On average, equities analysts predict that EZCORP, Inc. will post 1.3 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

EZPW has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of EZCORP in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their target price on EZCORP from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, EZCORP presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $19.00.

Insider Activity at EZCORP

In related news, Director Matthew W. Appel sold 9,038 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.02, for a total value of $162,864.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 133,371 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,403,345.42. This represents a 6.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 2.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.