JPMorgan Chase & Co. Issues Pessimistic Forecast for First Advantage (NYSE:FA) Stock Price

First Advantage (NYSE:FA) had its price target lowered by equities researchers at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $21.00 to $17.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “overweight” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s target price suggests a potential upside of 27.72% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on FA. Zacks Research lowered shares of First Advantage from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of First Advantage in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $19.25.

First Advantage Stock Down 3.6%

NYSE FA traded down $0.49 during trading on Friday, reaching $13.31. 1,063,634 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 998,818. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $14.85 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $16.17. 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 has a market cap of $2.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 443.67 and a beta of 1.19. First Advantage has a 12-month low of $12.25 and a 12-month high of $20.79.

First Advantage (NYSE:FA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.28 by $0.02. First Advantage had a net margin of 0.65% and a return on equity of 13.16%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.26 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 105.5% compared to the same quarter last year. First Advantage has set its FY 2025 guidance at 0.980-1.020 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that First Advantage will post 0.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Advantage

In other news, President Joelle M. Smith sold 9,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.70, for a total value of $155,430.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president directly owned 42,727 shares in the company, valued at $670,813.90. This represents a 18.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 3.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Advantage

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. CenterBook Partners LP boosted its holdings in First Advantage by 155.5% in the 3rd quarter. CenterBook Partners LP now owns 396,701 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,105,000 after purchasing an additional 241,427 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of First Advantage by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,613,968 shares of the company’s stock valued at $117,179,000 after buying an additional 210,187 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in First Advantage by 8.4% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,315,150 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,020,000 after acquiring an additional 255,641 shares during the last quarter. Herald Investment Management Ltd grew its position in First Advantage by 4.9% in the third quarter. Herald Investment Management Ltd now owns 365,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,617,000 after acquiring an additional 17,127 shares during the period. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC raised its holdings in First Advantage by 66.8% in the 3rd quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 27,090 shares of the company’s stock valued at $417,000 after buying an additional 10,846 shares during the period. 94.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About First Advantage

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.