First Advantage (NYSE:FA) Now Covered by BMO Capital Markets

Equities researchers at BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of First Advantage (NYSE:FA) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Briefing.com Automated Import reports. The firm set an “outperform” rating and a $20.00 price target on the stock. BMO Capital Markets’ price objective indicates a potential upside of 1.78% from the company’s previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of First Advantage from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Wolfe Research lowered shares of First Advantage from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of First Advantage in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Royal Bank of Canada initiated coverage on First Advantage in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $22.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $22.00 price objective on shares of First Advantage in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, First Advantage currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $53.29.

First Advantage Stock Performance

NYSE:FA opened at $19.65 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.39 billion, a PE ratio of 655.00 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a current ratio of 3.85, a quick ratio of 3.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. First Advantage has a 1 year low of $14.01 and a 1 year high of $20.79. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $18.97 and its 200 day simple moving average is $17.97.

First Advantage (NYSE:FA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 12th. The company reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.25 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $199.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $204.39 million. First Advantage had a return on equity of 13.16% and a net margin of 0.65%. The firm’s revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.25 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that First Advantage will post 0.75 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Advantage

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Barclays PLC lifted its position in shares of First Advantage by 57.3% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 81,669 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,621,000 after buying an additional 29,752 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in First Advantage by 0.8% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,294,063 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,692,000 after acquiring an additional 9,718 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of First Advantage by 6.1% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,253,081 shares of the company’s stock valued at $24,874,000 after acquiring an additional 72,400 shares during the period. Fred Alger Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of First Advantage by 26.7% in the 3rd quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC now owns 1,017,228 shares of the company’s stock valued at $20,192,000 after purchasing an additional 214,134 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Boussard & Gavaudan Investment Management LLP bought a new stake in shares of First Advantage in the 3rd quarter worth about $434,000. 94.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.