Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $25.66 Million Holdings in FirstCash Holdings, Inc. $FCFS

Principal Financial Group Inc. cut its stake in shares of FirstCash Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCFS) by 2.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 136,491 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,769 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.31% of FirstCash worth $25,660,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of FirstCash during the first quarter valued at about $26,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC boosted its stake 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 worth $31,000 after buying an additional 162 shares during the last quarter. High Point Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in FirstCash in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of FirstCash by 531.7% in the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 259 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 218 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC grew its position in shares of FirstCash by 29.6% during the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 245 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the period. 80.30% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Raul Ramos sold 6,835 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $225.23, for a total value of $1,539,447.05. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 20,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,594,692. This trade represents a 25.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Howard F. Hambleton sold 3,000 shares of FirstCash stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $226.41, for a total transaction of $679,230.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 32,406 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,337,042.46. The trade was a 8.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 27,500 shares of company stock valued at $6,243,104 in the last 90 days. 2.86% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings lowered FirstCash from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Wall Street Zen cut FirstCash from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, May 10th. TD Cowen lifted 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. Zacks Research cut FirstCash from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group raised their target price on FirstCash from $242.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, FirstCash currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $199.25.

FirstCash Price Performance

NASDAQ:FCFS opened at $209.66 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.27 and a beta of 0.53. FirstCash Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $119.21 and a 52-week high of $235.97. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $221.46 and a 200 day moving average of $200.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 3.42 and a current ratio of 4.77.

FirstCash (NASDAQ:FCFS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The company reported $2.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by $0.39. FirstCash had a return on equity of 18.68% and a net margin of 9.15%.The business had revenue of $1.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.07 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 25.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that FirstCash Holdings, Inc. will post 11.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

FirstCash Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th were given a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. FirstCash’s dividend payout ratio is 21.05%.

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.