Upstart (NASDAQ:UPST – Get Free Report) and EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW – Get Free Report) are both finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, valuation, analyst recommendations, dividends, earnings, risk and profitability.
Risk & Volatility
Upstart has a beta of 2.43, meaning that its share price is 143% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, EZCORP has a beta of 0.71, meaning that its share price is 29% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Institutional & Insider Ownership
63.0% of Upstart shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 99.8% of EZCORP shares are held by institutional investors. 17.3% of Upstart shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 2.1% of EZCORP shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.
Earnings & Valuation
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Upstart | $1.04 billion | 2.25 | $53.60 million | $0.49 | 49.18 |
| EZCORP | $1.27 billion | 1.54 | $109.61 million | $1.98 | 16.14 |
EZCORP has higher revenue and earnings than Upstart. EZCORP is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Upstart, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Profitability
This table compares Upstart and EZCORP’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Upstart | 4.84% | 7.13% | 1.82% |
| EZCORP | 9.97% | 13.99% | 7.49% |
Analyst Ratings
This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for Upstart and EZCORP, as reported by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Upstart | 2 | 7 | 8 | 0 | 2.35 |
| EZCORP | 0 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 2.75 |
Upstart currently has a consensus target price of $43.75, suggesting a potential upside of 81.54%. EZCORP has a consensus target price of $38.80, suggesting a potential upside of 21.40%. Given Upstart’s higher probable upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Upstart is more favorable than EZCORP.
Summary
EZCORP beats Upstart on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Upstart
Upstart Holdings, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates a cloud-based artificial intelligence (AI) lending platform in the United States. Its platform includes personal loans, automotive retail and refinance loans, home equity lines of credit, and small dollar loans that connects consumer demand for loans to its to bank and credit unions. Upstart Holdings, Inc. was founded in 2012 and is headquartered in San Mateo, California.
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. It also retails merchandise, primarily collateral forfeited from pawn lending operations and pre-owned merchandise purchased from customers. In addition, the company provides EZ+, a web-based application that allow customers to manage their pawn transactions, layaways, and loyalty rewards online. Further, it operates under the EZPAWN, Value Pawn & Jewelry, Empeño Fácil, Cash Apoyo Efectivo, GuatePrenda, and MaxiEfectivo brands. EZCORP, Inc. was incorporated in 1989 and is headquartered in Austin, Texas.
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