Profit Investment Management’s recent decision to fully exit FirstCash Holdings (FCFS), after selling 16,257 shares, has sharpened the spotlight on a company many value investors currently view as a steady cash flow story.

See our latest analysis for FirstCash Holdings.

That exit comes as FirstCash’s share price sits at $164.91, with a 7 day share price return of 5.19% and a 1 year total shareholder return of 56.53%. This points to momentum that has been building rather than fading over recent years.

If Profit Investment’s move has you thinking about where else cash flow stories might come from, it could be a good moment to look at fast growing stocks with high insider ownership as a source of fresh ideas.

With FirstCash delivering a 56.53% 1 year total return and trading at $164.91, yet still sitting about 10% below the average analyst price target, you have to ask: is there still a buying opportunity here, or is the market already baking in future growth?

On a P/E of 23.5x at a last close of $164.91, FirstCash screens as expensive compared with several benchmarks that investors often watch closely.

The P/E ratio links what you are paying today to the company’s current earnings. For a lender and pawn operator like FirstCash, it is a simple way to see how much the market is charging for each dollar of profit. A higher multiple can signal that investors are willing to pay up for the earnings profile or are expecting stronger profit growth ahead.

For FirstCash, the current 23.5x P/E sits well above the estimated fair P/E of 15.7x from the SWS fair ratio work. This suggests the market is assigning a richer price than that model implies. At the same time, it is far below the 45.3x peer average, which shows the shares are priced at a discount to that specific peer group even though they are expensive relative to both the Consumer Finance industry average of 9.5x and the fair ratio level the multiple could move toward over time.

Explore the SWS fair ratio for FirstCash Holdings

Result: Price-to-Earnings of 23.5x (OVERVALUED)

However, the story can change quickly if credit constrained customers pull back or if regulatory scrutiny on lending and pawn practices tightens and reduces profitability.

Find out about the key risks to this FirstCash Holdings narrative.

While the 23.5x P/E suggests a rich price, our DCF model is even more conservative, with an estimate of fair value at US$73.61 versus the current US$164.91. That implies the shares appear overvalued based on cash flow assumptions as well, so which signal do you trust more?