Coastal Bridge Advisors LLC Buys New Stake in FirstCash Holdings, Inc. $FCFS

Coastal Bridge Advisors LLC bought a new stake in FirstCash Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCFS) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund bought 8,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,361,000.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in shares of FirstCash during the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of FirstCash during the third quarter worth about $25,000. IFP Advisors Inc grew its stake in shares of FirstCash by 181.6% in the 2nd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 290 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares during the last quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd grew its position in FirstCash by 169.9% in the 2nd quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 448 shares of the company’s stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 282 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of FirstCash by 130.7% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 413 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,000 after acquiring an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.30% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Randel G. Owen sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.20, for a total transaction of $228,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 7,651 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,164,482.20. This represents a 16.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Howard F. Hambleton sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.74, for a total transaction of $654,960.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 26,581 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,352,372.94. This trade represents a 13.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 41,000 shares of company stock worth $6,481,395 in the last 90 days. 2.93% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Zacks Research downgraded FirstCash from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 2nd. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of FirstCash in a report on Friday, October 31st. Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $205.00 price target on shares of FirstCash in a research note on Monday, December 8th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of FirstCash in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of FirstCash from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, January 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, FirstCash presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $167.00.

FirstCash Trading Up 2.8%

NASDAQ FCFS opened at $170.75 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $7.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.64 and a beta of 0.52. FirstCash Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $106.77 and a 12 month high of $174.51. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $162.72 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $152.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 4.99 and a quick ratio of 3.72.

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

FirstCash declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, October 30th that permits the company to buyback $150.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 2.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.