Analysts Set First Advantage Co. (NYSE:FA) Target Price at $18.00

First Advantage Co. (NYSE:FA) has received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the six ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $18.00.

A number of equities analysts have commented on FA shares. William Blair started coverage on First Advantage in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on First Advantage from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on First Advantage from $16.00 to $21.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of First Advantage in a research report on Monday, May 13th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Joseph K. Jaeger sold 7,331 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.08, for a total value of $117,882.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 688,967 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,078,589.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, Director James Lindsey Clark sold 2,100 shares of First Advantage stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.48, for a total transaction of $32,508.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 42,927 shares in the company, valued at approximately $664,509.96. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Joseph K. Jaeger sold 7,331 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.08, for a total value of $117,882.48. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 688,967 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,078,589.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 15,034 shares of company stock worth $241,439. 5.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Advantage

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of First Advantage by 6.3% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 24,336 shares of the company’s stock worth $395,000 after acquiring an additional 1,447 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in shares of First Advantage by 16.2% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 15,478 shares of the company’s stock valued at $252,000 after purchasing an additional 2,163 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in First Advantage by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 406,641 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,738,000 after purchasing an additional 8,958 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI acquired a new stake in First Advantage during the 4th quarter worth about $179,000. Finally, Andina Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in First Advantage during the fourth quarter valued at about $271,000. 94.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

First Advantage Stock Performance

FA stock opened at $16.14 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $16.30 and its 200 day simple moving average is $16.22. First Advantage has a 12-month low of $12.46 and a 12-month high of $17.49. The firm has a market cap of $2.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 73.37, a P/E/G ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a current ratio of 4.29, a quick ratio of 4.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62.

First Advantage (NYSE:FA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 9th. The company reported $0.17 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.17. First Advantage had a net margin of 4.28% and a return on equity of 14.12%. The company had revenue of $169.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $167.91 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.19 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that First Advantage will post 0.83 EPS for the current year.

First Advantage Company Profile

First Advantage Corporation provides employment background screening, identity, and verification solutions worldwide. It offers pre-onboarding products and solutions, such as criminal background checks, drug/health screening, extended workforce screening, FBI channeling, identity checks and biometric fraud mitigation tools, education/work history verification, driver records and compliance, healthcare credentials, executive screening, and other screening products.