Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC Invests $765,000 in FirstCash Holdings, Inc. $FCFS

Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC bought a new stake in FirstCash Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCFS) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 5,662 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $765,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of FCFS. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in FirstCash by 37.8% in the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 13,521 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,627,000 after acquiring an additional 3,709 shares in the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC lifted its holdings in shares of FirstCash by 55.9% in the 1st quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 2,502 shares of the company’s stock valued at $301,000 after purchasing an additional 897 shares during the last quarter. FORA Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of FirstCash in the 1st quarter valued at about $283,000. Ieq Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of FirstCash in the 1st quarter valued at about $227,000. Finally, Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. purchased a new position in FirstCash during the 1st quarter worth approximately $6,206,000. 80.30% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

FirstCash Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FCFS opened at $162.06 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $158.12 and a 200 day moving average price of $146.43. FirstCash Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $101.75 and a 1-year high of $166.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 4.99 and a quick ratio of 3.72. The company has a market cap of $7.15 billion, a PE ratio of 23.38 and a beta of 0.53.

FirstCash (NASDAQ:FCFS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $2.26 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.91 by $0.35. FirstCash had a net margin of 8.88% and a return on equity of 17.44%. The company had revenue of $904.27 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $845.28 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.67 EPS. FirstCash’s quarterly revenue was up 11.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that FirstCash Holdings, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current year.

FirstCash Announces Dividend

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

FirstCash declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, October 30th that authorizes the company to buyback $150.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 2.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of FirstCash in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $205.00 target price on shares of FirstCash in a report on Monday, December 8th. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of FirstCash from $181.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Zacks Research raised shares of FirstCash from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 10th. Finally, Loop Capital lowered shares of FirstCash from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $145.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Friday, September 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $167.00.

Insider Transactions at FirstCash

In other FirstCash news, CFO R Douglas Orr sold 2,500 shares of FirstCash stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.45, for a total value of $396,125.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 38,234 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,058,177.30. The trade was a 6.14% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Randel G. Owen sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.20, for a total value of $228,300.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 7,651 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,164,482.20. This trade represents a 16.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 48,500 shares of company stock valued at $7,678,508 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 2.93% 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.