FirstCash Holdings, Inc. $FCFS Holdings Raised by Castleark Management LLC

Castleark Management LLC increased its position in FirstCash Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCFS) by 15.6% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 70,730 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,530 shares during the period. Castleark Management LLC’s holdings in FirstCash were worth $13,297,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in FirstCash during the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of FirstCash in the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of FirstCash by 490.9% in the 4th 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 during the period. High Point Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of FirstCash in the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Assetmark Inc. lifted its position in shares of FirstCash by 113.2% in the first quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 194 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. 80.30% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

FirstCash News Roundup

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.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other FirstCash news, COO Thomas Brent Stuart sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 140,846 shares in the company, valued at $32,181,902.54. This represents a 6.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO R Douglas Orr sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.29, for a total transaction of $454,580.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 35,734 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,121,980.86. This trade represents a 5.30% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 27,500 shares of company stock worth $6,243,104. Insiders own 2.86% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

FirstCash Stock Performance

Shares of FCFS opened at $195.06 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $8.55 billion, a PE ratio of 22.27 and a beta of 0.53. FirstCash Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $119.21 and a one year high of $235.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 4.89 and a quick ratio of 3.51. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $219.55 and its 200 day moving average price is $201.35.

FirstCash (NASDAQ:FCFS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The company reported $2.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.39 by $0.11. FirstCash had a return on equity of 19.65% and a net margin of 9.42%.The firm 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 company earned $1.34 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 29.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that FirstCash Holdings, Inc. will post 11.85 earnings per share for the current year.

FirstCash Dividend Announcement

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

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.