Foyston Gordon & Payne Inc Buys New Stake in First Advantage Co. $FA

Foyston Gordon & Payne Inc purchased a new position in shares of First Advantage Co. (NYSE:FA) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 34,825 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $629,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Sei Investments Co. boosted its stake in shares of First Advantage by 33.6% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 181,210 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,131,000 after buying an additional 45,608 shares during the last quarter. Sunriver Management LLC lifted its holdings in First Advantage by 14.0% in the first quarter. Sunriver Management LLC now owns 3,032,711 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,665,000 after acquiring an additional 371,425 shares during the period. Quantinno Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in First Advantage by 581.4% in the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 214,882 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,527,000 after acquiring an additional 183,345 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in First Advantage in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,288,000. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new stake in shares of First Advantage during the 4th quarter worth approximately $257,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.91% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

First Advantage Trading Down 1.6%

Shares of FA stock opened at $20.90 on Friday. 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 company has a market cap of $3.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 696.67 and a beta of 1.16. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $19.93 and a 200-day simple moving average of $15.21. First Advantage Co. has a 1-year low of $8.82 and a 1-year high of $25.15.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Needham & Company LLC raised shares of First Advantage from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $28.00 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of First Advantage from $18.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 17th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $18.00 price objective on shares of First Advantage in a report on Friday, May 8th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of First Advantage from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 17th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of First Advantage from $21.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $23.33.

First Advantage Profile

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.