First Cash Acquires 29-Store Chain of Pawn Stores; Reports EPS $0.70 vs $0.69 Est; 2012 Guidance $2.65-2.70 vs $2.69

First Cash Financial Services, Inc. FCFS today announced the acquisition of a 29-store chain of pawn stores located in Mexico. In addition, the Company announced that expected earnings per share from continuing operations were $0.70 for the quarter ending December 31, 2011 and $2.25 for all of fiscal 2011. The full earnings release for fourth quarter and full year results for 2011 is scheduled for January 25, 2012. In addition, the Company is initiating its fiscal 2012 earnings per share guidance to be in a range of $2.65 to $2.70 per share, an increase of 18% to 20% over the prior year. Pawn Acquisition The Company acquired 100% of the ownership equity in a 29-store Mexico-based pawn operation per a purchase agreement, which was signed and closed on January 10, 2012. The 29 acquired stores are all large format, full service stores located in two states in western Mexico. In addition, the Company has an exclusive option until January 2015 to purchase up to eight additional stores located in a third state in western Mexico. The effective purchase price, net of cash acquired, was approximately $46.7 million and was paid in a combination of cash and a $4.9 million note payable to the seller. The operations and earnings of the acquired stores will be consolidated effective January 10, 2012, and the Company believes the transaction will be accretive to its earnings in 2012. Rick Wessel, chief executive officer of First Cash, stated, "This is an important strategic acquisition which will further expand our market-leading position in Mexico. The acquired operation has a strong presence in each of its operating territories and provides us a valuable entry point into these additional markets in western Mexico. All of the stores are large format locations, similar to our existing First Cash stores, which support both lending and retail operations for jewelry and a wide variety of hardgood items. With the average age of the acquired stores being less than four years, and one-third of the locations being opened within the past 30 months, we believe that the stores have the capacity to generate additional revenues and profits as they mature. We are excited about the addition of these stores as we further advance our significant leadership position in Mexico." Store Growth With the acquisition and including 2012 store openings to date, First Cash now operates 720 stores in total, of which 488 are in Mexico and 232 are in the U.S. During the first two weeks of 2012, the Company completed the 29-store acquisition and opened an additional 13 new stores for a total of 42 year-to-date additions. For fiscal 2011, a total of 82 new store locations were opened or acquired. For 2012, the Company anticipates opening approximately 81 to 91 new stores in addition to the 29 stores just acquired, for a total full-year increase of 110 to 120 stores. Over 100 of the expected 2012 additions will be in Mexico and the remainder will be in the U.S., primarily in Texas. All of the anticipated 2012 store openings will be large format pawn stores. 2011 Earnings Results The Company announced preliminary diluted earnings per share from continuing operations for the quarter and year ended December 31, 2011. It expects net income from continuing operations of $2.25 per share for the full year of 2011, which represents an increase of 36% over the prior year earnings of $1.65 per share. For the quarter ended December 31, 2011, earnings are projected at $0.70 per share, compared to $0.56 per share in the prior-year quarter. The regular fiscal 2011 earnings announcement is scheduled for release before the market opens on Wednesday, January 25, 2012. 2012 Earnings Forecast The Company is initiating its fiscal 2012 guidance for diluted earnings per share from continuing operations to be in a range of $2.65 to $2.70 an 18% to 20% increase over expected 2011 earnings. The 2012 guidance includes expected earnings accretion from the 29-store acquisition, but also reflects approximately $0.05 to $0.06 of earnings drag from the weaker Mexican peso, which is currently 13.6 to 1, compared to the average exchange rate of 12.4 to 1 in fiscal 2011.