First Advantage Co. (NYSE:FA) Stock Rated "Moderate Buy" by Wall Street Brokerages

Key Points

• First Advantage has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating from six analysts, split evenly between buy and hold recommendations. The average 12-month price target is $23.33, with recent targets ranging from $22 to $30.
• Institutional investors own approximately 94.91% of the company’s shares, while several funds recently increased or initiated positions in First Advantage.
• The stock fell 4.5% to $19.18 in recent trading, despite the company reporting quarterly EPS of $0.35—beating estimates by $0.06—and 14.9% year-over-year revenue growth.

First Advantage Co. (NYSE:FA - Get Free Report) has received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the six analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $23.33.

FA has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on shares of First Advantage from $21.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of First Advantage from $18.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, August 17th. Barclays raised their price objective on First Advantage from $20.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Zacks Research lowered First Advantage from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC raised First Advantage from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $28.00 target price for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 6th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Advantage

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of FA. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in shares of First Advantage by 47.1% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 2,445 shares of the company's stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 783 shares during the period. KBC Group NV acquired a new stake in First Advantage during the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. Fifth Third Bancorp acquired a new stake in First Advantage during the 1st quarter worth approximately $45,000. State of Wyoming bought a new position in First Advantage in the second quarter valued at approximately $81,000. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its stake in First Advantage by 9.8% in the second quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 8,096 shares of the company's stock valued at $146,000 after buying an additional 724 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.91% of the company's stock.

First Advantage Trading Down 4.5%

First Advantage stock traded down $0.90 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $19.18. 1,326,414 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,540,978. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $20.26 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $17.71. First Advantage has a 52 week low of $8.82 and a 52 week high of $25.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.29 billion, a PE ratio of 639.33 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a quick ratio of 3.85, a current ratio of 3.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61.

First Advantage (NYSE:FA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $0.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.06. First Advantage had a net margin of 0.65% and a return on equity of 13.16%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.27 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. First Advantage has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.23-1.290 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that First Advantage will post 0.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Advantage Company Profile

First Advantage Corporation NYSE: FA is a global provider of employment background screening and workforce-management solutions. The company helps employers make informed hiring and onboarding decisions through services that may include criminal-record searches, identity verification, employment and education verification, professional-license checks, drug and health screening, and ongoing workforce monitoring.

Its technology platform is designed to support the hiring and compliance processes of organizations of varying sizes and across multiple industries.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.