Start here if you're new
what it is
FirstCash makes small loans against your stuff, then sells unclaimed goods through 3,026 pawn stores across the U.S. and Latin America.
how it gets paid
Last year Firstcash made $1.7B in revenue. Pawn fees was the main engine at $1.05B, or 62% of sales.
why it's growing
Revenue grew 10.7% last year. The 55.29% earnings beat matters most because the stock already trades at 23.1 times trailing earnings.
what just happened
FirstCash posted a earnings surprise of 55.29%, with revenue at $1.2B and EPS at $5.07.
At a glance
B++ balance sheet — above average — nothing keeping you up at night
70/100 earnings predictability — reasonably predictable
23.1x trailing p/e — priced about right
1.1% dividend yield — cash in your pocket every quarter
10.5% return on capital — nothing to write home about
xvary composite: 69/100 — average
What they do
FirstCash makes small loans against your stuff, then sells unclaimed goods through 3,026 pawn stores across the U.S. and Latin America.
Scale is the moat here. FirstCash had 1,200 U.S. stores and 1,826 Latin America stores at the end of 2024, so if you need cash fast, they are already on your block. Pawn loans are asset-backed lending (a loan secured by your item) → the company can sell the collateral if you do not repay → so what: that helps support a 22.0% operating margin.
How they make money
$1.7B
annual revenue · their business grew +10.7% last year
Pawn fees
$1.05B
+9.0%
Retail merchandise sales
$0.31B
+9.0%
Point-of-sale lease and finance
$0.24B
+10.7%
Consumer finance and other
$0.10B
+10.7%
The products that matter
making pawn loans and selling forfeited collateral
Pawn Lending
85% of total income
it produced 85% of total income in 2025, up from 80% in 2024. that is the profit engine and, increasingly, the concentration risk.
profit engine
operating physical pawn locations
Pawn Store Network
3,311 stores
the network reached 3,311 stores after 9% growth through the first nine months of 2025. more storefronts mean more local loan demand and more inventory to resell.
scale moat
offering point-of-sale payment financing
Retail POS Payment Solutions
revenue declined
this is the weak spot. revenue fell on lower originations and the loss of two large furniture merchants in late 2024, which makes the business mix less balanced.
under pressure
Key numbers
23.1x
trailing p/e
P/E → price relative to yearly profit → so what: you are paying $23.10 for each $1 of trailing earnings, which leaves limited upside if growth cools.
$9.00
fy2026 eps est
EPS → profit per share → so what: if FirstCash earns $9.00 a share in 2026, today's $171.10 stock price equals about 19 times next year's profit.
22.0%
operating margin
Operating margin → profit left after running the business → so what: keeping 22 cents of every sales dollar is strong for a store-heavy lender.
10.5%
return on capital
Return on capital → profit earned on the money tied up in the business → so what: this is solid, not spectacular, for a company with 3,026 locations.
Financial health
B++
strength
- balance sheet grade B++ — above average financial health
- risk rank 3 — safer than 50% of stocks
- price stability 75 / 100
- long-term debt $1.6B (18% of capital)
- net profit margin 11.9% — keeps 12 cents of every dollar in revenue
- return on equity 14% — $0.14 profit for every $1 investors have put in
B++ — functional but not a standout on the balance sheet.
Total return vs. market
You invested $10,000 in FCFS 3 years ago → it's now worth $19,860.
The index would have given you $14,770.
source: institutional data · total return
What just happened
beat estimates
FirstCash posted a earnings surprise of 55.29%, with revenue at $1.2B and EPS at $5.07.
That jump matched the pattern from 2025, when full-year EPS rose to $7.40 from $5.73 in 2024. Management also kept expanding pawn stores, with locations up 9% through the first three quarters.
$1.2B
revenue
$5.07
eps
n/a
gross margin
the number that mattered
The 55.29% earnings beat matters most because the stock already trades at 23.1 times trailing earnings, so FirstCash needs to keep overdelivering.
-
firstcash holdings likely posted another record performance in 2025.
-
this included the final three months of the year, with december-quarter revenue and earnings projected to increase about 13% and 25%, year to year, respectively.
-
as has been the case during the first nine months of the year, the lion’s share of the good news is likely to come from the pawn lending segment, which now accounted for 85% of total income in 2025, up from 80% in 2024.
-
the company continued to focus on expansion of its pawn store locations, which grew 9% through the first three quarters of 2025, to 3,311 stores.this was supported by the recent entry into the u.k., through its augustacquisition of h&t group, which added a meaningful base of high-performing pawn locations. to wit, growth drivers during the period included higher precious metal prices, which strengthened demand for pawn loans during the holiday shopping season as customer sought quick access to short-term cash.
-
these positives should more than offset revenue declines in the retail pos payment solutions unit owing to lower originations amid a soft consumer environment and the loss of two large furniture merchants in late 2024.
source: company earnings report, 2026
Get this snapshot in your inbox
This page, delivered free — plus weekly updates when the numbers change. plain english, no spam.
weekly updates
earnings alerts
plain english
no spam
What could go wrong
the top risk is pawn concentration rising to 85% of total income.
high
pawn concentration
pawn lending contributed 85% of total income in 2025, up from 80% in 2024. one segment is carrying more of the story each year.
if pawn demand cools, more of FCFS slows at once.
high
retail pos deterioration
the pos payment solutions unit already saw revenue declines from lower originations and the loss of two large furniture merchants in late 2024.
that weakens diversification right when pawn is taking a larger share of income.
med
acquisition and store expansion execution
the footprint reached 3,311 stores after 9% growth through nine months, helped by the h&t group deal and the u.k. entry. bought growth still has to translate into returns.
if new stores underperform, the revenue base gets bigger without margins following.
low
balance sheet flexibility
$1.6B of long-term debt is manageable with a B++ balance sheet, but it still reduces room for error if demand softens or integration slips.
debt is 18% of capital — not a crisis, just a constraint.
with 85% of income tied to pawn, a shrinking pos unit, and $1.6B of long-term debt, the risk is not abstract macro noise — it is one business line carrying too much of the load.
source: institutional data · regulatory filings · risk analysis
Pay attention to
earnings
next earnings: is pawn still doing even more of the work
if pawn stays above 85% of total income because the rest of the company is shrinking, the diversification story gets weaker.
metric
pawn income mix
85% of total income came from pawn in 2025, up from 80% the year before. that one number tells you whether the business is broadening or narrowing.
trend
store growth after 3,311 locations
the footprint grew 9% through the first three quarters of 2025. you want the added stores lifting profits, not just the store count.
risk
retail pos stabilization
this unit already lost two large furniture merchants in late 2024. if originations keep falling, FCFS becomes even more of a pure pawn bet.
Analyst rankings
short-term outlook
top 20%
momentum score 2 — in human-speak, analysts think FCFS has better-than-average odds of outperforming over the next 12 months.
risk profile
average
stability score 3 — this sits near the middle of the pack. not a bunker stock, not a chaos stock.
chart momentum
average
technical score 3 — the chart is not screaming anything dramatic right now.
earnings predictability
70 / 100
the earnings stream is dependable enough to underwrite, but you should still expect a few bumps.
source: institutional data
Institutional activity
institutions have been net buying for 3 consecutive quarters — 185 buyers vs. 173 sellers in 3q2025. total institutional holdings: 40.3M shares. net buying for 3 quarters.
source: institutional data
Price targets
3-5 year target range
$142
$231
$171
current price
$187
target midpoint · +9% from current · 3-5yr high: $250 (+45% · 11% ann'l return)
Want the deeper analysis?
The full deep dive: dcf model, scenario analysis, competitive moat breakdown, and quarterly tracking — everything on this page, taken further.
see plans from $5/moThe deep dive