FirstCash (NASDAQ:FCFS) Price Target Raised to $240.00

FirstCash (NASDAQ:FCFS) had its price target increased by Canaccord Genuity Group from $217.00 to $240.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group’s target price suggests a potential upside of 25.32% from the company’s previous close.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on FCFS. Wall Street Zen cut shares of FirstCash from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, February 15th. Zacks Research lowered FirstCash from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of FirstCash in a research note on Monday, December 29th. 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, FirstCash presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $183.25.

FirstCash Trading Up 1.6%

FirstCash stock traded up $3.03 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $191.50. The stock had a trading volume of 89,702 shares, compared to its average volume of 281,257. The stock has a market cap of $8.42 billion, a PE ratio of 25.81 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $180.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $164.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 4.55 and a quick ratio of 3.36. FirstCash has a 52 week low of $114.21 and a 52 week high of $199.60.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Thomas Brent Stuart sold 10,000 shares of FirstCash stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 150,846 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,533,920.38. The trade was 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, CFO R Douglas Orr sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.37, for a total value of $701,480.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 111,289 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,516,751.93. This represents a 3.47% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 26,500 shares of company stock valued at $4,783,985. 2.93% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On FirstCash

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of FirstCash in the third quarter worth $25,000. Rothschild Investment LLC boosted its holdings in shares of FirstCash by 127.8% during the 3rd quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 180 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC grew its position in shares of FirstCash by 490.9% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 195 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares in the last quarter. Community Bank N.A. bought a new stake in shares of FirstCash in the third quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, High Point Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in FirstCash during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Institutional investors own 80.30% of the company’s stock.

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.