CWA Asset Management Group LLC Raises Stake in FirstCash Holdings, Inc. $FCFS

CWA Asset Management Group LLC boosted its position in shares of FirstCash Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCFS) by 5.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 63,133 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,351 shares during the period. CWA Asset Management Group LLC’s holdings in FirstCash were worth $10,062,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of FCFS. Park Avenue Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of FirstCash by 15.8% in the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 2,239 shares of the company’s stock valued at $357,000 after purchasing an additional 306 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of FirstCash by 9.2% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,728 shares of the company’s stock worth $435,000 after purchasing an additional 229 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in FirstCash by 96.0% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 240,441 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,091,000 after buying an additional 117,788 shares during the last quarter. Mirabella Financial Services LLP acquired a new stake in FirstCash in the third quarter valued at $3,463,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP raised its position in shares of FirstCash by 25.8% during the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 634 shares of the company’s stock worth $100,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. 80.30% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

FirstCash Trading Up 1.9%

Shares of FirstCash stock opened at $192.08 on Friday. FirstCash Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $114.21 and a 1 year high of $199.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 3.36 and a current ratio of 4.55. The company has a market capitalization of $8.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.89 and a beta of 0.46. The company’s fifty day moving average is $181.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $164.81.

FirstCash (NASDAQ:FCFS) last announced its earnings results 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 net margin of 9.02% and a return on equity of 17.99%. The business had revenue of $1.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.01 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.12 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 19.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that FirstCash Holdings, Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

FirstCash Announces Dividend

The business 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. FirstCash’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.64%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on FCFS. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of FirstCash in a report on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research lowered shares of FirstCash from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 2nd. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price target on shares of FirstCash from $217.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of FirstCash from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, February 15th. One 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $183.25.

Insider Buying and Selling at FirstCash

In other news, COO Thomas Brent Stuart sold 10,000 shares of the business’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 of the company’s stock, 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 SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO R Douglas Orr sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.99, for a total value of $365,980.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 36,734 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,721,954.66. This trade represents a 5.16% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 26,500 shares of company stock valued at $4,783,985 in the last ninety 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.