Performant Healthcare (NASDAQ:PHLT) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Performant Healthcare (NASDAQ:PHLT) experienced a 91% increase in trading volume, with 548,234 shares changing hands, while the stock last traded at $7.62.
• Analyst reports indicate a mixed outlook; JMP Securities and Citizens JMP have issued a "strong-buy" rating with an $8.00 price target, while Wall Street Zen downgraded PHLT from "buy" to "hold."
• Insider trading activity showed Director Lisa Im sold 180,867 shares at $3.25, decreasing her ownership stake by 12.82%.

Performant Healthcare, Inc. (NASDAQ:PHLT - Get Free Report) shares saw unusually-high trading volume on Monday . Approximately 548,234 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 91% from the previous session's volume of 287,144 shares.The stock last traded at $7.62 and had previously closed at $7.64.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Lake Street Capital cut Performant Healthcare from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $7.75 target price for the company. in a research report on Monday. Craig Hallum set a $7.75 target price on Performant Healthcare and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday. B. Riley cut Performant Healthcare from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday. Wall Street Zen cut Performant Healthcare from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday. Finally, Citizens Jmp cut Performant Healthcare from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $7.88.

Performant Healthcare Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $596.72 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -95.25 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a quick ratio of 2.56, a current ratio of 2.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $3.88 and a two-hundred day moving average of $3.01.

Performant Healthcare (NASDAQ:PHLT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.02) by $0.04. Performant Healthcare had a negative return on equity of 6.68% and a negative net margin of 4.62%. The business had revenue of $33.27 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $29.92 million. As a group, analysts predict that Performant Healthcare, Inc. will post -0.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Lisa Im sold 180,867 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.25, for a total transaction of $587,817.75. Following the sale, the director owned 1,229,413 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,995,592.25. The trade was a 12.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 9.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. bought a new position in Performant Healthcare in the second quarter valued at approximately $248,000. Range Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Performant Healthcare in the second quarter worth $80,000. Mirador Capital Partners LP acquired a new stake in Performant Healthcare in the second quarter worth $9,698,000. CWC Advisors LLC. acquired a new stake in shares of Performant Healthcare during the second quarter worth $384,000. Finally, HighMark Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Performant Healthcare during the second quarter worth $3,250,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.15% of the company's stock.

About Performant Healthcare

Performant Healthcare, Inc engages in the provision of technology-enabled audit, recovery, customer care, and related analytics services. Its services help identify improper payments, and in some markets, restructure and recover delinquent or defaulted assets and improper payments for both government and private clients.