UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 8-K

CURRENT REPORT

Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of
The Securities Exchange Act of 1934

EZCORP, INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

DELAWARE		0-19424		74-2540145
(State or other jurisdiction of		(Commission File		(I.R.S. Employer
incorporation)		Number)		Identification No.)

1901 CAPITAL PARKWAY
AUSTIN, TEXAS		78746
(Address of principal executive offices)		(Zip Code)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code:

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:

o		Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)
o		Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)
o		Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))
o		Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

 

 

ITEM 2.02. RESULTS OF OPERATIONS AND FINANCIAL CONDITION

This information set forth under “Item 2.02. Results Of Operations And Financial Condition,” including the Exhibit attached hereto, shall not be deemed “filed” for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”) or otherwise subject to the liabilities of that section, nor shall it be deemed incorporated by reference in any filing under the Securities Act of 1933 or the Exchange Act, regardless of any general incorporation language in such filing.

On November 6, 2008, EZCORP, Inc. issued a press release announcing its results of operations and financial condition for the quarter and year ended September 30, 2008. A copy of the press release is attached hereto as Exhibit 99.1.

ITEM 9.01. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND EXHIBITS

99.1       Press release dated November 6, 2008, issued by EZCORP, Inc.

SIGNATURE

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

		EZCORP, INC.
		(Registrant)
Date: November 6, 2008		By: /s/ Dan Tonissen   (Signature)
		Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer,
		and Director

EXHIBIT INDEX

99.1     Press release dated November 6, 2008, issued by EZCORP, Inc.

EXHIBIT 99.1

EZCORP ANNOUNCES FISCAL 2008 FOURTH QUARTER AND YEAREND
RESULTS

AUSTIN, Texas (November 6, 2008) ¾ EZCORP, Inc. (NNM: EZPW) announced today results for its fourth fiscal quarter and 2008 fiscal year, which ended September 30, 2008.

For the quarter ended September 30, 2008, EZCORP’s net income increased 44% to $16,031,000 ($0.37 per share) compared to $11,155,000 ($0.26 per share) for the quarter ended September 30, 2007. Total revenues for the quarter increased 19% to $123,402,000 while operating income improved 13% to $18,950,000.

Included in the results for the quarter are the impact of Hurricane Ike and the benefit of taking a previously under utilized foreign tax credit. On September 13^th, the Company closed 154 stores in the hurricane threat area, with most of these closed on September 12^th in advance of the hurricane. During the month, the Company lost 1,042 store days due to the hurricane and the resulting power outages. The Company estimates this adversely impacted pretax income approximately $2.5 million ($0.04 tax affected earnings per share).

During the quarter, the Company recognized the benefit of a previously under utilized foreign tax credit related to its investment in Albemarle and Bond Holdings Plc. This resulted in a reduction to income tax expense, not related to the quarter, of approximately $3.1 million ($0.07 per share). Of the $3.1 million tax expense reduction, approximately $2.4 million ($0.06 per share) pertained to the larger credit available on Albemarle and Bond’s earnings prior to the Company’s 2008 fiscal year.

For the twelve months ended September 30, 2008, net income increased 38% to $52,429,000 ($1.21 per share) compared to $37,874,000 ($0.88 per share) for the prior year twelve month period. Total revenues grew 23% to $457,403,000 while operating income increased 34% to $74,619,000.

Excluding the adverse impact of Hurricane Ike and the benefit of the foreign tax credit related to Albemarle and Bond’s earnings in prior periods, the Company’s fully diluted earnings per share for the fourth fiscal quarter and 2008 fiscal year would have been $0.34 and $1.19 per share.

Commenting on these results, President and Chief Executive Officer, Joe Rotunda, stated, “Our fourth fiscal 2008 quarter was our twenty-fifth consecutive quarter of year over year earnings growth. While the unfavorable impact of Hurricane Ike and the favorable impact of the foreign tax credit utilization resulted in a net favorable impact on our quarter’s results, we still achieved our earnings expectation for the quarter excluding these two unusual items. Our pawn operations in the U.S. and Mexico drove our excellent results for the quarter.”

Rotunda continued, “We have completed our due diligence and are moving ahead with our eleven store Pawn Plus acquisition and the acquisition of Value Financial Services. We expect to close on the Pawn Plus transaction later this month and close on the Value Financial Services acquisition in the latter half of December. We believe both of these acquisitions will be excellent additions to our store portfolio.”

Rotunda concluded, “For our first fiscal quarter and 2009 fiscal year, we expect earnings per share, excluding the two pending acquisitions, to be approximately $0.35 and $1.45. Assuming a late November closing on the Las Vegas acquisition and a late December closing on the Value Financial Services transaction, the acquisitions will have a nominal earnings per share impact on our first fiscal quarter and an approximate $0.08 to $0.09 per share benefit on our fiscal year results.”

“In addition to completing these two acquisitions, we plan to open 30 to 35 EZMONEY locations in the U.S. and 30 to 35 Empeño Fácil locations in Mexico. In Canada we will continue to monitor the regulatory process in each province and enter provinces that adopt acceptable payday loan regulations.”

EZCORP is primarily a lender or provider of credit services to individuals who do not have cash resources or access to credit to meet their short-term cash needs. In 294 U.S. EZPAWN and 38 Mexico Empeño Fácil locations open on September 30, 2008, the Company offers non-recourse loans collateralized by tangible personal property, commonly known as pawn loans. At these locations, the Company also sells merchandise, primarily collateral forfeited from its pawn lending operations, to consumers looking for good value. In 477 EZMONEY locations and 71 EZPAWN locations open on September 30, 2008, the Company offers short-term non-collateralized loans, often referred to as payday loans, or fee based credit services to customers seeking loans.

This announcement contains certain forward-looking statements regarding the Company’s expected performance for future periods including, but not limited to, new store expansion, anticipated benefits of acquisitions and expected future earnings. Actual results for these periods may materially differ from these statements. Such forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties such as changing market conditions in the overall economy and the industry, consumer demand for the Company’s services and merchandise, changes in the regulatory environment, and other factors periodically discussed in the Company’s annual, quarterly and other reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

You are invited to listen to a conference call discussing these results on November 6, 2008 at 3:30pm Central Time. The conference call can be accessed over the Internet or replayed at your convenience at the following address.

http://www.videonewswire.com/event.asp?id=52866

For additional information, contact Dan Tonissen at (512) 314-2289.

EZCORP, Inc.
Highlights of Consolidated Statements of Operations (Unaudited)
(in thousands, except per share data)

		Three Months Ended September 30,
		2008				2007
Revenues:
Merchandise sales		$	34,926			$	33,101
Jewelry scrapping sales			27,162				18,198
Pawn service charges			26,860				22,055
Signature loan fees			33,561				30,215
Other			893				323
Total revenues			123,402				103,892
Cost of goods sold:
Cost of merchandise sales			20,490				19,598
Cost of jewelry scrapping sales			17,180				12,791
Total cost of goods sold			37,670				32,389
Net revenues			85,732				71,503
Operations expense			40,235				34,515
Signature loan bad debt			12,303				9,422
Administrative expense			10,917				8,221
Depreciation and amortization			3,327				2,618
Operating income			18,950				16,727
Interest income			(118	)			(155	)
Interest expense			192				67
Equity in net income of unconsolidated affiliate			(1,180	)			(760	)
Loss on sale/disposal of assets			412				59
Other			(3	)			—
Income before income taxes			19,647				17,516
Income tax expense			3,616				6,361
Net income		$	16,031			$	11,155
Net income per share, diluted		$	0.37			$	0.26
Weighted average shares, diluted			43,468				43,215

EZCORP, Inc.
Highlights of Consolidated Statements of Operations (Unaudited)
(in thousands, except per share data)

		Year Ended September 30,
		2008				2007
Revenues:
Merchandise sales		$	155,828			$	141,094
Jewelry scrapping sales			76,732				51,893
Pawn service charges			94,244				73,551
Signature loan fees			128,478				104,347
Other			2,121				1,330
Total revenues			457,403				372,215
Cost of goods sold:
Cost of merchandise sales			92,612				83,501
Cost of jewelry scrapping sales			46,790				34,506
Total cost of goods sold			139,402				118,007
Net revenues			318,001				254,208
Operations expense			153,420				128,602
Signature loan bad debt			37,150				28,508
Administrative expense			40,458				31,749
Depreciation and amortization			12,354				9,812
Operating income			74,619				55,537
Interest income			(477	)			(1,654	)
Interest expense			420				281
Equity in net income of unconsolidated affiliate			(4,342	)			(2,945	)
(Gain) / loss on sale/disposal of assets			939				(72	)
Other			8				—
Income before income taxes			78,071				59,927
Income tax expense			25,642				22,053
Net income		$	52,429			$	37,874
Net income per share, diluted		$	1.21			$	0.88
Weighted average shares, diluted			43,327				43,230

EZCORP, Inc.
Highlights of Consolidated Balance Sheets (Unaudited)
(in thousands, except per share data and store counts)

		As of September 30,
		2008				2007
Assets:
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents		$	27,444			$	22,533
Pawn loans			75,936				60,742
Payday loans, net			7,124				4,814
Pawn service charges receivable, net			12,755				10,113
Signature loan fees receivable, net			5,406				5,992
Inventory, net			43,209				37,942
Deferred tax asset			10,926				8,964
Prepaid expenses and other assets			9,116				6,146
Total current assets			191,916				157,246
Investment in unconsolidated affiliate			38,439				35,746
Property and equipment, net			40,079				33,806
Deferred tax asset, non-current			8,139				4,765
Goodwill			24,376				16,211
Other assets, net			5,771				3,412
Total assets		$	308,720			$	251,186
Liabilities and stockholders’ equity:
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable and other accrued expenses		$	29,425			$	25,592
Customer layaway deposits			2,327				1,988
Federal income taxes payable			246				4,795
Total current liabilities			31,998				32,375
Deferred gains and other long-term liabilities			3,672				2,886
Total stockholders’ equity			273,050				215,925
Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity		$	308,720			$	251,186
Pawn loan balance per ending pawn store		$	229			$	204
Inventory per ending pawn store		$	130			$	127
Book value per share		$	6.58			$	5.23
Tangible book value per share		$	5.89			$	4.77
Pawn store count — end of period			332				298
Signature loan store count — end of period			477				433
Shares outstanding — end of period			41,525				41,306

EZCORP, Inc.
Operating Segment Results (Unaudited)
(in thousands, except store counts)

		EZPAWN				Empeño
		United States				Fácil				EZMONEY
		Operations				Operations				Operations				Consolidated
Three months ended September 30, 2008:
Revenues:
Sales		$	59,997			$	2,091			$	—			$	62,088
Pawn service charges			25,342				1,518				—				26,860
Signature loan fees			651				—				32,910				33,561
Other			892				1				—				893
Total revenues			86,882				3,610				32,910				123,402
Cost of goods sold			36,289				1,381				—				37,670
Net revenues			50,593				2,229				32,910				85,732
Operating expenses:
Operations expense			25,273				1,287				13,675				40,235
Signature loan bad debt			367				—				11,936				12,303
Total direct expenses			25,640				1,287				25,611				52,538
Store operating income		$	24,953			$	942			$	7,299			$	33,194
Pawn store count — end of period			294				38				—				332
Signature loan store count — end of period			6				—				471				477
Three months ended September 30, 2007:
Revenues:
Sales		$	51,212			$	87			$	—			$	51,299
Pawn service charges			22,007				48				—				22,055
Signature loan fees			828				—				29,387				30,215
Other			322				1				—				323
Total revenues			74,369				136				29,387				103,892
Cost of goods sold			32,341				48				—				32,389
Net revenues			42,028				88				29,387				71,503
Operating expenses:
Operations expense			22,510				161				11,844				34,515
Signature loan bad debt			347				—				9,075				9,422
Total direct expenses			22,857				161				20,919				43,937
Store operating income		$	19,171			$	(73	)		$	8,468			$	27,566
Pawn store count — end of period			294				4				—				298
Signature loan store count — end of period			6				—				427				433

EZCORP, Inc.
Operating Segment Results (Unaudited)
(in thousands, except store counts)

		EZPAWN				Empeño
		United States				Fácil				EZMONEY
		Operations				Operations				Operations				Consolidated
Year ended September 30, 2008:
Revenues:
Sales		$	225,747			$	6,813			$	—			$	232,560
Pawn service charges			89,431				4,813				—				94,244
Signature loan fees			2,782				—				125,696				128,478
Other			2,116				5				—				2,121
Total revenues			320,076				11,631				125,696				457,403
Cost of goods sold			135,142				4,260				—				139,402
Net revenues			184,934				7,371				125,696				318,001
Operating expenses:
Operations expense			96,674				4,066				52,680				153,420
Signature loan bad debt			1,108				—				36,042				37,150
Total direct expenses			97,782				4,066				88,722				190,570
Store operating income		$	87,152			$	3,305			$	36,974			$	127,431
Pawn store count — end of period			294				38				—				332
Signature loan store count — end of period			6				—				471				477
Year ended September 30, 2007:
Revenues:
Sales		$	192,832			$	155			$	—			$	192,987
Pawn service charges			73,471				80				—				73,551
Signature loan fees			3,314				—				101,033				104,347
Other			1,328				2				—				1,330
Total revenues			270,945				237				101,033				372,215
Cost of goods sold			117,923				84				—				118,007
Net revenues			153,022				153				101,033				254,208
Operating expenses:
Operations expense			87,151				404				41,047				128,602
Signature loan bad debt			1,390				—				27,118				28,508
Total direct expenses			88,541				404				68,165				157,110
Store operating income		$	64,481			$	(251	)		$	32,868			$	97,098
Pawn store count — end of period			294				4				—				298
Signature loan store count — end of period			6				—				427				433