EZCORP, Carriage Services, and York Water touted as recession-resistant stocks to hold through a sell-off

The Motley Fool··Read original
2▲4 ▼0Impact / 5
Summary · why it matters

EZCORP, Carriage Services, and York Water are highlighted as businesses that generate steady demand regardless of economic conditions, making them candidates to hold even during a stock market sell-off. EZCORP operates pawn shops and has expanded to roughly 1,500 stores in 16 countries after acquiring the 105-store Founders One chain, while also launching an online car title loan platform in Texas; its stock has climbed about 150% over the past year, partly driven by record gold prices above $5,000 an ounce that boosted scrap margins from 22% to 38%. Carriage Services owns funeral homes and cemeteries, recently entered the Knoxville market with an acquisition, and secured a $60 million credit facility for further deals, though it carries meaningful debt. York Water, which has paid a dividend every year since 1816, raised roughly $48 million in a stock offering to fund capital projects and acquisitions of small water and wastewater systems in Pennsylvania, but as a regulated utility its returns are capped and shares can be sensitive to interest rates.

Impact on assets 4

Aging Population▲ · 1 stocks
Carriage Services Inc
CSV
▲ PositiveDemandrelevance

Funeral services have steady demand regardless of economic conditions, making it recession-resistant.

Financials▲ · 1 stocks
EZCORP Inc
EZPW
▲ PositiveDemandPricingrelevance

Pawn shop demand is steady in recessions, and record gold prices boost scrap margins.

Climate Adaptation & Water▲ · 1 stocks
Others▲ · 1 stocks
⛏Gold Futures
GOLD
▲ PositiveSupplyrelevance

Record gold prices above $5,000 an ounce are mentioned, boosting EZCORP's scrap margins.

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