Tax refunds are smaller this year, which is bad news for consumers – but positive news for some lenders, according to Stephens. Tax Day looms, with federal income tax returns due on April 18. The average refund was $2,933 for the week ending March 17, down 11.3% from the prior year, according to the Internal Revenue Service . The decline is due to the elimination of certain tax credits after pandemic-era relief expired .
"If we were to pick one, lower tax refunds are more positive for FirstCash," he said. "The pawn lender has been the most negatively impacted from a pawn balance perspective from ongoing government stimulus." FirstCash is an operator of pawn stores. Shares are up more than 9% in 2023, and the stock pays a dividend of 1.4%. Wall Street has a mixed picture on FirstCash, however: About 4 in 10 of the analysts covering it rate it buy or overweight, according to FactSet.
Trump's tax code is killing me