Joelle M. Smith Sells 9,900 Shares of First Advantage (NYSE:FA) Stock

Key Points

• First Advantage President Joelle Smith sold 9,900 shares of the company's stock for approximately $155,430, reducing her ownership by 18.81% to 42,727 shares.
• The company reported $0.27 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding estimates and reflecting a 111.7% year-over-year revenue increase.
• First Advantage's stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a price target of $20.25 and recent analyst upgrades, including a "strong-buy" rating from Zacks.

First Advantage Co. (NYSE:FA - Get Free Report) President Joelle M. Smith sold 9,900 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.70, for a total value of $155,430.00. Following the transaction, the president owned 42,727 shares in the company, valued at approximately $670,813.90. This trade represents a 18.81% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

First Advantage Trading Down 2.2%

Shares of First Advantage stock traded down $0.34 during trading on Friday, hitting $15.32. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,059,189 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,025,869. The stock has a market cap of $2.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 510.67 and a beta of 1.23. First Advantage Co. has a 52 week low of $12.32 and a 52 week high of $20.79. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $16.67 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $16.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 3.85 and a quick ratio of 3.85.

First Advantage (NYSE:FA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.03. First Advantage had a net margin of 0.65% and a return on equity of 13.16%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 111.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.21 earnings per share. First Advantage has set its FY 2025 guidance at 0.860-1.030 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that First Advantage Co. will post 0.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have issued reports on FA shares. Barclays increased their price target on First Advantage from $15.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Zacks Research upgraded First Advantage from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, September 4th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of First Advantage in a report on Thursday, August 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $20.25.

Institutional Trading of First Advantage

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in FA. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its position in First Advantage by 2,967.1% during the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 9,232 shares of the company's stock worth $130,000 after acquiring an additional 8,931 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of First Advantage by 21.5% during the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 237,848 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,455,000 after purchasing an additional 42,150 shares during the period. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in First Advantage by 26.4% in the 1st quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 24,811 shares of the company's stock worth $350,000 after purchasing an additional 5,185 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers raised its position in shares of First Advantage by 10.8% during the 1st quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 87,194 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,229,000 after purchasing an additional 8,498 shares during the period. Finally, Fred Alger Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of First Advantage by 10.4% in the first quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC now owns 1,289,173 shares of the company's stock worth $18,164,000 after buying an additional 121,687 shares in the last quarter. 94.91% of the stock is 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.