FirstCash (NASDAQ:FCFS) Trading 9.3% Higher – Should You Buy?

FirstCash Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCFS) was up 9.3% on Friday . The stock traded as high as $225.06 and last traded at $225.06. 309,114 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 17% from the average session volume of 371,175 shares. The stock had previously closed at $205.91.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on FCFS shares. Weiss Ratings raised FirstCash from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their target price on shares of FirstCash from $242.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of FirstCash from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of FirstCash from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, May 10th. Finally, Loop Capital upgraded shares of FirstCash from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $255.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, August 10th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, FirstCash presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $249.00.

FirstCash Stock Up 9.3%

The company has a market cap of $9.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.69 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a quick ratio of 3.51, a current ratio of 4.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $214.07 and a 200 day moving average price of $206.78.

FirstCash (NASDAQ:FCFS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The company reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.39 by $0.11. FirstCash had a net margin of 9.42% and a return on equity of 19.65%. The business had revenue of $1.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.34 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 29.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that FirstCash Holdings, Inc. will post 11.85 earnings per share for the current year.

FirstCash Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be paid a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. FirstCash’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.18%.

Insider Transactions at FirstCash

In other FirstCash news, CFO R Douglas Orr sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $216.00, for a total transaction of $432,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 34,734 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,502,544. This represents a 5.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Howard F. Hambleton sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.98, for a total transaction of $425,960.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 30,406 shares in the company, valued at $6,475,869.88. This trade represents a 6.17% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 20,348 shares of company stock worth $4,492,755. Insiders own 2.86% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On FirstCash

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of FCFS. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of FirstCash in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,088,429,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in FirstCash by 36.4% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,169,281 shares of the company’s stock valued at $186,361,000 after buying an additional 312,132 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in FirstCash during the second quarter worth about $248,059,000. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of FirstCash by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,043,699 shares of the company’s stock worth $166,367,000 after buying an additional 31,550 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of FirstCash by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,009,170 shares of the company’s stock worth $160,850,000 after buying an additional 5,626 shares during the period. 80.30% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

FirstCash Company Profile

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.