FirstCash Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCFS) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

FirstCash Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCFS) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of February. As of February 13th, there was short interest totaling 786,601 shares, an increase of 51.3% from the January 29th total of 519,981 shares. Approximately 2.1% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 306,912 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.6 days. Based on an average trading volume of 306,912 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.6 days. Approximately 2.1% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FCFS has been the subject of several research reports. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of FirstCash from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, February 15th. Zacks Research lowered shares of FirstCash from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 2nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of FirstCash in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group set a $217.00 price objective on shares of FirstCash in a research report on Friday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $177.50.

Insider Transactions at FirstCash

In related news, CFO R Douglas Orr sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.99, for a total transaction of $365,980.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 36,734 shares in the company, valued at $6,721,954.66. The trade was a 5.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Thomas Brent Stuart sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.53, for a total value of $1,825,300.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 150,846 shares in the company, valued at $27,533,920.38. This trade represents a 6.22% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 30,500 shares of company stock worth $5,438,945. Company insiders own 2.93% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On FirstCash

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP bought a new stake in shares of FirstCash during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $66,925,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of FirstCash by 133.8% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 562,104 shares of the company’s stock worth $89,588,000 after purchasing an additional 321,663 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in shares of FirstCash by 36.4% during 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 purchasing an additional 312,132 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of FirstCash by 67.6% in the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 623,059 shares of the company’s stock worth $97,503,000 after purchasing an additional 251,305 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in FirstCash by 76.3% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 534,571 shares of the company’s stock worth $84,687,000 after buying an additional 231,379 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.30% of the company’s stock.

FirstCash Stock Up 2.2%

Shares of FCFS opened at $197.09 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 4.55 and a quick ratio of 3.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.56 and a beta of 0.49. FirstCash has a 1 year low of $110.16 and a 1 year high of $197.74. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $172.74 and its 200-day simple moving average is $160.34.

FirstCash (NASDAQ:FCFS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $2.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.54 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $1.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.01 billion. FirstCash had a net margin of 9.02% and a return on equity of 17.99%. FirstCash’s quarterly revenue was up 19.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.12 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that FirstCash will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

FirstCash Dividend Announcement

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

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.