Performant Financial (NASDAQ:PFMT) Raised to Strong-Buy at Craig Hallum

Craig Hallum upgraded shares of Performant Financial (NASDAQ:PFMT) to a strong-buy rating in a research report released on Tuesday morning, Zacks.com reports.

Separately, B. Riley initiated coverage on shares of Performant Financial in a report on Thursday, July 25th. They set a buy rating and a $8.00 price objective on the stock.

Performant Financial Stock Up 2.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:PFMT opened at $3.56 on Tuesday. Performant Financial has a 1 year low of $2.00 and a 1 year high of $4.04. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $3.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $3.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $274.80 million, a PE ratio of -39.55 and a beta of 0.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 2.65 and a quick ratio of 2.65.

Performant Financial (NASDAQ:PFMT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The business services provider reported ($0.04) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.05) by $0.01. Performant Financial had a negative return on equity of 8.11% and a negative net margin of 5.32%. The company had revenue of $29.36 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.20 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($0.05) EPS. Analysts predict that Performant Financial will post -0.11 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Performant Financial

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PFMT. First Light Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Performant Financial by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. First Light Asset Management LLC now owns 9,670,110 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $30,219,000 after buying an additional 291,814 shares in the last quarter. Parkman Healthcare Partners LLC raised its holdings in Performant Financial by 21.7% in the 4th quarter. Parkman Healthcare Partners LLC now owns 1,580,865 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,940,000 after acquiring an additional 281,480 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Performant Financial by 22.4% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,046,100 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,269,000 after buying an additional 191,100 shares during the last quarter. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC increased its position in Performant Financial by 40.6% during the fourth quarter. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC now owns 244,697 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $765,000 after purchasing an additional 70,682 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mirador Capital Partners LP raised its position in shares of Performant Financial by 4.0% in the 1st quarter. Mirador Capital Partners LP now owns 1,995,795 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,868,000 after buying an additional 76,933 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.15% of the company’s stock.

About Performant Financial

Performant Financial Corporation provides technology-enabled audit, recovery, and analytics services in the United States. The company identifies improper payments resulting from incorrect coding, procedures that were not medically necessary, incomplete documentation or claims submitted based on outdated fee schedules, and coverage discrepancies; and provides first party call center and other outsourced services.