Joelle M. Smith Sells 10,000 Shares of First Advantage Co. (NYSE:FA) Stock

First Advantage Co. (NYSE:FA) insider Joelle M. Smith sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.39, for a total value of $143,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 24,669 shares in the company, valued at approximately $354,986.91. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

First Advantage Stock Performance

NYSE FA opened at $14.10 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 6.35 and a current ratio of 6.35. The company has a market capitalization of $2.05 billion, a PE ratio of 44.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.20. First Advantage Co. has a 52-week low of $10.07 and a 52-week high of $15.89. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $14.57 and a 200 day simple moving average of $13.93.

First Advantage (NYSE:FA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 9th. The company reported $0.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.02. First Advantage had a net margin of 6.29% and a return on equity of 12.88%. The company had revenue of $185.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $182.38 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.25 EPS. First Advantage’s quarterly revenue was down 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that First Advantage Co. will post 1.01 EPS for the current year.

First Advantage Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 21st were given a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 18th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Advantage

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FA. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in First Advantage by 3.8% during the second quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 27,652 shares of the company’s stock valued at $426,000 after purchasing an additional 1,025 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in shares of First Advantage by 10.7% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 11,157 shares of the company’s stock valued at $156,000 after purchasing an additional 1,082 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its stake in shares of First Advantage by 7.8% during the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 16,603 shares of the company’s stock valued at $256,000 after buying an additional 1,196 shares in the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its holdings in First Advantage by 2.4% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 70,200 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,082,000 after buying an additional 1,655 shares during the period. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp grew its stake in First Advantage by 15.3% in the 2nd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 12,800 shares of the company’s stock valued at $197,000 after buying an additional 1,700 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.91% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on FA shares. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on First Advantage in a research note on Wednesday, September 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $17.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of First Advantage from $14.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 10th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $15.17.

About First Advantage

First Advantage Corporation provides technology solutions for screening, verifications, safety, and compliance related to human capital 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.