FirstCash Holdings, Inc. $FCFS Shares Acquired by Castleark Management LLC

Castleark Management LLC boosted its stake in FirstCash Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCFS - Free Report) by 15.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 70,730 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 9,530 shares during the quarter. Castleark Management LLC owned approximately 0.16% of FirstCash worth $13,297,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of FCFS. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of FirstCash by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 22,946 shares of the company's stock worth $2,761,000 after purchasing an additional 1,021 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in shares of FirstCash by 9.7% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 389,509 shares of the company's stock valued at $46,866,000 after purchasing an additional 34,364 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC increased its stake in FirstCash by 237.2% in the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 62,057 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,467,000 after purchasing an additional 43,653 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in FirstCash by 4.9% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 14,187 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,917,000 after purchasing an additional 666 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its position in FirstCash by 67.4% during the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 20,872 shares of the company's stock worth $2,821,000 after buying an additional 8,402 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.30% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting FirstCash

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.

FirstCash Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FCFS opened at $195.06 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $8.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.27 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a 50 day moving average of $219.55 and a two-hundred day moving average of $201.35. FirstCash Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $119.21 and a 52-week high of $235.97. The company has a quick ratio of 3.51, a current ratio of 4.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01.

FirstCash (NASDAQ:FCFS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The company reported $2.50 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.39 by $0.11. FirstCash had a net margin of 9.42% and a return on equity of 19.65%. The firm had revenue of $1.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.03 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.34 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 29.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that FirstCash Holdings, Inc. will post 11.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

FirstCash Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. FirstCash's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.18%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other FirstCash news, Director Paula K. Garrett sold 1,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.40, for a total value of $326,100.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 6,564 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,427,013.60. This trade represents a 18.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO R Douglas Orr sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.29, for a total value of $454,580.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 35,734 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,121,980.86. This 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. 2.86% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.

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