World Acceptance (NASDAQ:WRLD) Shares Gap Up – What’s Next?

World Acceptance Co. (NASDAQ:WRLD)’s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $121.75, but opened at $124.88. World Acceptance shares last traded at $124.34, with a volume of 13,720 shares trading hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com raised shares of World Acceptance from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th.

World Acceptance Trading Up 2.6 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 22.46 and a quick ratio of 22.46. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $132.48 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $122.12. The firm has a market cap of $717.92 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.70 and a beta of 1.48.

World Acceptance (NASDAQ:WRLD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The credit services provider reported $2.45 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.23 by $1.22. World Acceptance had a net margin of 14.41% and a return on equity of 19.03%. Equities analysts expect that World Acceptance Co. will post 14 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at World Acceptance

In related news, SVP Jason E. Childers sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.58, for a total value of $71,790.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 8,039 shares in the company, valued at $1,154,239.62. The trade was a 5.86 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Luke J. Umstetter sold 488 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.19, for a total transaction of $73,292.72. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 14,760 shares in the company, valued at $2,216,804.40. The trade was a 3.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 4,188 shares of company stock worth $619,409 in the last ninety days. 43.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new stake in World Acceptance in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $56,000. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of World Acceptance by 19.0% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 822 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $97,000 after buying an additional 131 shares during the last quarter. Amundi lifted its stake in shares of World Acceptance by 195.7% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 1,591 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $180,000 after buying an additional 1,053 shares during the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its stake in shares of World Acceptance by 48.8% in the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 1,643 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $185,000 after buying an additional 539 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of World Acceptance by 10.0% in the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 1,791 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $211,000 after buying an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. 83.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About World Acceptance

World Acceptance Corporation engages in consumer finance business in the United States. The company provides short-term small installment loans, medium-term larger installment loans, related credit insurance, and ancillary products and services to individuals. It offers income tax return preparation and filing services; and automobile club memberships.