FirstCash (NASDAQ:FCFS) Trading Down 8.3% – Should You Sell?

FirstCash Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCFS)’s share price was down 8.3% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $192.08 and last traded at $191.4460. 303,373 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 16% from the average daily volume of 362,340 shares. The stock had previously closed at $208.74.

Key FirstCash News

Here are the key news stories impacting FirstCash this week:

• Positive Sentiment: FirstCash posted record second-quarter results, with EPS of $2.50 beating estimates of $2.39 and revenue of $1.07 billion topping the $1.03 billion consensus. Management also said pawn demand helped drive a 58% increase in GAAP EPS and a 40% increase in adjusted EPS. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share, signaling continued cash generation and shareholder returns. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: FirstCash also authorized a new $150 million share repurchase plan after completing its prior program, which can support earnings per share and investor confidence. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data showed no meaningful short position reported, so it does not add a clear new catalyst for the shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FCFS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut shares of FirstCash from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, May 10th. Zacks Research cut FirstCash from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. TD Cowen raised their target price on FirstCash from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price target on FirstCash from $242.00 to $252.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut FirstCash from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $199.25.

FirstCash Stock Down 1.2%

The firm’s fifty day moving average is $219.55 and its 200-day moving average is $201.09. The company has a market capitalization of $8.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.27 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 3.42 and a current ratio of 4.89.

FirstCash (NASDAQ:FCFS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The company reported $2.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.39 by $0.11. FirstCash had a net margin of 9.42% and a return on equity of 19.65%. The business had revenue of $1.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.34 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 29.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that FirstCash Holdings, Inc. will post 11.33 EPS for the current year.

FirstCash Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. FirstCash’s dividend payout ratio is 19.18%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Raul Ramos sold 6,835 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $225.23, for a total transaction of $1,539,447.05. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 20,400 shares in the company, valued at $4,594,692. The trade was a 25.10% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing 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 Monday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.49, for a total value of $2,284,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 140,846 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $32,181,902.54. The trade was a 6.63% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 27,500 shares of company stock worth $6,243,104 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 2.86% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of FirstCash

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in FCFS. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its position in shares of FirstCash by 4.7% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 22,946 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,761,000 after purchasing an additional 1,021 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of FirstCash by 9.7% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 389,509 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,866,000 after buying an additional 34,364 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of FirstCash by 237.2% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 62,057 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,467,000 after buying an additional 43,653 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in shares of FirstCash by 4.9% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 14,187 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,917,000 after buying an additional 666 shares during the period. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its stake in shares of FirstCash by 67.4% in the 2nd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 20,872 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,821,000 after acquiring an additional 8,402 shares in the last quarter. 80.30% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.