Gilford Securities Reiterates Hold Rating on Rent-A-Center Inc. (RCII)

Gilford Securities is out with a research report this morning, where it reiterates its Hold rating on Rent-A-Center Inc. RCII. The GS analysts noted that same-store sales were flat, operating profit margin increased by 100bp to 12.1% and that EPS increased by 7.4% to $0.71 compared to $0.66 in the year ago period. As for valuation, the analysts remarked, “RCII shares trade at 10.2x our 2011E EPS of $3.10 and 6.3x its enterprise value. Lower debt levels and further share repurchases would result in higher earnings per-share.”