FirstCash (NASDAQ:FCFS) Hits New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

FirstCash Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCFS)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $166.72 and last traded at $166.2510, with a volume of 169317 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $163.02.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of FirstCash in a research report on Friday, October 31st. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of FirstCash from $181.00 to $188.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of FirstCash from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 8th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of FirstCash from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 2nd. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $205.00 price objective on shares of FirstCash in a research note on Monday, December 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $167.00.

FirstCash Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 3.72, a current ratio of 4.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The firm has a market cap of $7.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.85 and a beta of 0.52. The business’s 50 day moving average is $159.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $148.72.

FirstCash (NASDAQ:FCFS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $2.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.91 by $0.35. FirstCash had a return on equity of 17.44% and a net margin of 8.88%.The firm had revenue of $904.27 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $845.28 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.67 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that FirstCash Holdings, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

FirstCash Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 26th. Investors of record on Friday, November 14th were given a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 14th. FirstCash’s payout ratio is presently 24.24%.

FirstCash announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, October 30th that permits the company to repurchase $150.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 2.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other FirstCash news, CFO R Douglas Orr sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.45, for a total transaction of $396,125.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 38,234 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,058,177.30. This represents a 6.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Thomas Brent Stuart sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.97, for a total transaction of $1,599,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 127,724 shares in the company, valued at $20,432,008.28. This trade represents a 7.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 48,500 shares of company stock valued at $7,678,508. Corporate insiders own 2.93% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On FirstCash

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in FirstCash by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,096,956 shares of the company’s stock valued at $649,040,000 after purchasing an additional 83,113 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of FirstCash by 1.2% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 980,738 shares of the company’s stock valued at $132,552,000 after purchasing an additional 11,534 shares in the last quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC boosted its position in shares of FirstCash by 1.0% during the third quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 857,510 shares of the company’s stock valued at $135,847,000 after buying an additional 8,610 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings in FirstCash by 4.0% during the third quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 742,610 shares of the company’s stock worth $117,644,000 after buying an additional 28,704 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners grew its holdings in FirstCash by 1.3% during the second quarter. Boston Partners now owns 658,961 shares of the company’s stock worth $88,871,000 after buying an additional 8,503 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.30% of the company’s stock.

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.