FirstCash Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCFS) Short Interest Update

FirstCash Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCFS) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest during the month of February. As of February 27th, there was short interest totaling 544,966 shares, a decline of 30.7% from the February 12th total of 786,601 shares. Currently, 1.5% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 240,022 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.3 days. Based on an average daily volume of 240,022 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.3 days. Currently, 1.5% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Insider Buying and Selling at FirstCash

In other FirstCash news, COO Thomas Brent Stuart sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief operating officer owned 150,846 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,533,920.38. This represents a 6.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Howard F. Hambleton sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.12, for a total value of $740,480.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 35,406 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,554,358.72. This represents a 10.15% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 30,500 shares of company stock valued at $5,438,945. Insiders own 2.93% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On FirstCash

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Squarepoint Ops LLC boosted its holdings in FirstCash by 685.2% in the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 37,896 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,121,000 after acquiring an additional 33,070 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC grew its position in FirstCash by 26.0% during the second quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 33,462 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,522,000 after acquiring an additional 6,907 shares during the period. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC increased its stake in FirstCash by 1.0% during the third quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 857,510 shares of the company’s stock worth $135,847,000 after acquiring an additional 8,610 shares during the last quarter. Coastal Bridge Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in FirstCash during the third quarter worth about $1,361,000. Finally, Vise Technologies Inc. acquired a new position in shares of FirstCash in the 2nd quarter valued at about $248,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

FirstCash Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of FirstCash stock traded up $2.12 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $193.07. 210,677 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 274,573. FirstCash has a 52-week low of $113.32 and a 52-week high of $199.60. The company has a fifty day moving average of $178.54 and a 200-day moving average of $163.45. The company has a current ratio of 4.55, a quick ratio of 3.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.02 and a beta of 0.46.

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

FirstCash Dividend Announcement

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