FirstCash Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCFS) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of FirstCash Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCFS) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six research firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, three have issued a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $183.25.

Several research firms have recently commented on FCFS. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their target price on FirstCash from $217.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of FirstCash in a report on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research lowered FirstCash from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded FirstCash from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, February 15th.

Insider Buying and Selling

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 completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 35,406 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,554,358.72. The trade was a 10.15% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Thomas Brent Stuart sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.53, for a total transaction of $1,825,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 150,846 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,533,920.38. This trade represents a 6.22% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 26,500 shares of company stock valued at $4,783,985 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 2.93% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On FirstCash

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in FCFS. Villanova Investment Management Co LLC grew its stake in shares of FirstCash by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Villanova Investment Management Co LLC now owns 12,783 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,037,000 after buying an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. State of Wyoming boosted its holdings in FirstCash by 4.3% in the third quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 1,765 shares of the company’s stock worth $280,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Profund Advisors LLC increased its position in FirstCash by 4.9% during the third quarter. Profund Advisors LLC now owns 1,632 shares of the company’s stock worth $259,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Ascent Group LLC raised its holdings in FirstCash by 6.0% during the fourth quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 1,423 shares of the company’s stock valued at $227,000 after buying an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC lifted its position in shares of FirstCash by 1.0% in the third quarter. Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC now owns 8,703 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,379,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.30% of the company’s stock.

FirstCash Trading Down 0.6%

FirstCash stock opened at $190.88 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $183.56 and its 200-day moving average is $166.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 3.36 and a current ratio of 4.55. FirstCash has a 1 year low of $116.66 and a 1 year high of $199.60. The company has a market cap of $8.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.73 and a beta of 0.46.

FirstCash (NASDAQ:FCFS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $2.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.54 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $1.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.01 billion. FirstCash had a net margin of 9.02% and a return on equity of 17.99%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 19.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.12 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that FirstCash will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

FirstCash Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 18th were given a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. FirstCash’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.64%.

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.