Reviewing Jernigan Capital (NASDAQ:JCAP) & EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW)

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) and Jernigan Capital (NASDAQ:JCAP) are both finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, risk, analyst recommendations, dividends, institutional ownership, valuation and profitability.

Volatility and Risk

EZCORP has a beta of 0.71, indicating that its share price is 29% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Jernigan Capital has a beta of -0.02, indicating that its share price is 102% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares EZCORP and Jernigan Capital”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
EZCORP	$1.27 billion	1.60	$109.61 million	$1.98	16.77
Jernigan Capital	$613.29 million	1.94	$187.96 million	$2.45	8.47

Jernigan Capital has lower revenue, but higher earnings than EZCORP. Jernigan Capital is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than EZCORP, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

99.8% of EZCORP shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.1% of EZCORP shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 8.3% of Jernigan Capital shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares EZCORP and Jernigan Capital’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
EZCORP	9.97%	13.99%	7.49%
Jernigan Capital	23.50%	35.87%	8.16%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations for EZCORP and Jernigan Capital, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
EZCORP	0	2	6	0	2.75
Jernigan Capital	1	1	4	1	2.71

EZCORP currently has a consensus target price of $39.00, indicating a potential upside of 17.47%. Jernigan Capital has a consensus target price of $27.50, indicating a potential upside of 32.59%. Given Jernigan Capital’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Jernigan Capital is more favorable than EZCORP.

Summary

Jernigan Capital beats EZCORP on 9 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

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.

About Jernigan Capital

Jernigan Capital is a New York Stock Exchange-listed real estate investment trust (NYSE: JCAP) that provides debt and equity capital to private developers, owners and operators of self-storage facilities with a view to eventual outright ownership of facilities the Company finances. The Company's mission is to maximize shareholder value by accumulating a multi-billion dollar investment portfolio consisting of the newest, most attractive and best located self-storage facilities in the United States through a talented and experienced team demonstrating the highest levels of integrity, dedication, excellence and community.