Analysts Set First Advantage Co. (NYSE:FA) Target Price at $53.29

Shares of First Advantage Co. (NYSE:FA) have earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the ten ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $53.29.

FA has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada initiated coverage on shares of First Advantage in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $22.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of First Advantage from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of First Advantage in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of First Advantage in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $20.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Barclays restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $22.00 target price on shares of First Advantage in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Advantage

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of FA. Quarry LP boosted its stake in shares of First Advantage by 49.7% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,607 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 865 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new position in shares of First Advantage during the second quarter valued at approximately $209,000. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of First Advantage during the second quarter valued at approximately $211,000. Truist Financial Corp bought a new position in shares of First Advantage during the second quarter valued at approximately $234,000. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of First Advantage during the third quarter valued at approximately $250,000. 94.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

First Advantage Stock Down 2.5 %

Shares of NYSE FA opened at $17.46 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $18.71 and its 200-day moving average price is $18.29. The company has a current ratio of 3.85, a quick ratio of 3.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 582.00 and a beta of 1.17. First Advantage has a 12-month low of $14.01 and a 12-month high of $20.79.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by $0.01. First Advantage had a net margin of 0.65% and a return on equity of 13.16%. The company had revenue of $199.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $204.39 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.25 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that First Advantage will post 0.74 EPS for the current fiscal 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.