Zacks Research Upgrades First Advantage (NYSE:FA) to “Strong-Buy”

First Advantage (NYSE:FA) was upgraded by Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Needham & Company LLC upgraded First Advantage from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $28.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $18.00 price target on First Advantage in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of First Advantage from $20.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of First Advantage from $18.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of First Advantage from $21.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $23.33.

First Advantage Price Performance

Shares of NYSE FA opened at $20.95 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 3.85 and a quick ratio of 3.85. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $19.62 and its 200-day simple moving average is $15.06. First Advantage has a 12 month low of $8.82 and a 12 month high of $25.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 698.33 and a beta of 1.16.

First Advantage (NYSE:FA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $0.35 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.06. First Advantage had a net margin of 0.65% and a return on equity of 13.16%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.27 earnings per share. First Advantage’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. First Advantage has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.23-1.290 EPS. Analysts expect that First Advantage will post 0.74 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other First Advantage news, Director James Lindsey Clark sold 4,921 shares of First Advantage stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.69, for a total transaction of $77,210.49. Following the transaction, the director owned 56,844 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $891,882.36. The trade was a 7.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 4.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Advantage

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in shares of First Advantage by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 13,954,320 shares of the company’s stock valued at $202,757,000 after acquiring an additional 572,580 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in First Advantage during the 2nd quarter worth $217,748,000. Capital World Investors grew its position in First Advantage by 9.4% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 9,098,714 shares of the company’s stock worth $132,204,000 after purchasing an additional 780,200 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its position in First Advantage by 18.4% during the 3rd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 6,225,825 shares of the company’s stock worth $95,815,000 after purchasing an additional 969,314 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bamco Inc. NY acquired a new position in First Advantage in the second quarter valued at $63,214,000. 94.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About First Advantage

First Advantage is a global provider of background screening, identity verification and workforce risk management solutions. The company delivers a comprehensive suite of services that help employers verify candidate credentials, manage regulatory compliance and mitigate risk throughout the employee lifecycle. Its platform is built to integrate with leading human capital management and applicant tracking systems, enabling a seamless and scalable experience for organizations of all sizes.

The company’s core offerings include pre-employment and continuous background screening, digital identity verification, drug and health testing, and ongoing employee monitoring.