FirstCash (NASDAQ:FCFS) Sets New 1-Year High – Time to Buy?
by Sarita Garza · The Markets DailyFirstCash Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCFS – Get Free Report)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $197.92 and last traded at $193.07, with a volume of 29163 shares. The stock had previously closed at $195.23.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen cut FirstCash from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, February 15th. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $217.00 target price on FirstCash in a report on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of FirstCash in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of FirstCash from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $177.50.
Get Our Latest Analysis on FirstCash
FirstCash Price Performance
The company has a quick ratio of 3.36, a current ratio of 4.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The company has a market cap of $8.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.27 and a beta of 0.46. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $173.40 and its 200 day simple moving average is $160.75.
FirstCash (NASDAQ:FCFS – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $2.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.54 by $0.10. FirstCash had a net margin of 9.02% and a return on equity of 17.99%. The business had revenue of $1.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.01 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.12 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 19.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that FirstCash Holdings, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.
FirstCash Announces Dividend
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 18th were issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 18th. FirstCash’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.64%.
Insider Buying and Selling at FirstCash
In other FirstCash news, insider Howard F. Hambleton sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.12, for a total transaction of $740,480.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 35,406 shares in the company, valued at $6,554,358.72. This represents a 10.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO R Douglas Orr sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.37, for a total transaction of $701,480.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 111,289 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,516,751.93. The trade was a 3.47% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 30,500 shares of company stock valued at $5,438,945 in the last three months. 14.77% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
Institutional Trading of FirstCash
A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of FCFS. Squarepoint Ops LLC increased its holdings in FirstCash by 685.2% during the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 37,896 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,121,000 after purchasing an additional 33,070 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in FirstCash by 1.7% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 388,635 shares of the company’s stock valued at $52,520,000 after acquiring an additional 6,633 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in FirstCash by 26.0% in the second quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 33,462 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,522,000 after acquiring an additional 6,907 shares during the last quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC grew its holdings in FirstCash by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 857,510 shares of the company’s stock worth $135,847,000 after acquiring an additional 8,610 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Coastal Bridge Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of FirstCash in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,361,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.30% of the company’s stock.
About FirstCash
FirstCash, Inc (NASDAQ: FCFS) is a leading integrated operator of pawn stores and provider of short-term consumer loan services in the United States and Mexico. Through its retail pawn outlets, FirstCash offers collateral-based loans secured by personal property, enabling customers to access liquidity without a credit history or traditional bank account. The company also purchases, trades and sells a broad range of secondhand merchandise, including electronics, jewelry and power tools, through its network of conveniently located stores.
In addition to its pawn-broking activities, FirstCash provides unsecured consumer loans designed to meet urgent cash needs.