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

FirstCash Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCFS)’s stock 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 traded. The stock had previously closed at $163.02.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on FCFS. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of FirstCash in a research report on Monday, December 29th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on FirstCash from $181.00 to $188.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Wall Street Zen raised FirstCash from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 8th. Zacks Research lowered FirstCash from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $205.00 price target on shares of FirstCash in a research report on Monday, December 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $167.00.

FirstCash Stock 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 company has a fifty day moving average price of $158.96 and a 200 day moving average price of $148.25. The stock has a market cap of $7.19 billion, a PE ratio of 23.51 and a beta of 0.52.

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

FirstCash Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 14th were issued a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 14th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. FirstCash’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.24%.

FirstCash declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, October 30th that permits the company to repurchase $150.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 2.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at FirstCash

In other FirstCash news, insider Howard F. Hambleton sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.74, for a total value of $654,960.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 26,581 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,352,372.94. The trade was a 13.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Rick L. Wessel sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.39, for a total transaction of $3,127,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 866,982 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $135,587,314.98. This trade represents a 2.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 48,500 shares of company stock worth $7,678,508 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 2.93% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in FirstCash in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Rothschild Investment LLC raised its holdings in shares of FirstCash by 127.8% during the third quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 180 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in FirstCash in the second quarter worth $25,000. Community Bank N.A. purchased a new stake in FirstCash in the third quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in FirstCash by 70.5% in the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 220 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.