Advantage Solutions (NASDAQ:ADV) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

Advantage Solutions Inc. (NASDAQ:ADV) gapped up prior to trading on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $36.06, but opened at $38.78. Advantage Solutions shares last traded at $39.7150, with a volume of 2,685 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ADV has been the subject of several research reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Advantage Solutions from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 7th. Morgan Stanley set a $18.75 price target on shares of Advantage Solutions in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price target on shares of Advantage Solutions from $37.50 to $50.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Zacks Research raised shares of Advantage Solutions from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Advantage Solutions from a “sell (e+)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $34.38.

Advantage Solutions Trading Up 4.7%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.18, a quick ratio of 1.95 and a current ratio of 1.95. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $32.53 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $24.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $532.52 million, a P/E ratio of -2.12 and a beta of 2.21.

Insider Buying and Selling at Advantage Solutions

In other news, CEO David A. Peacock purchased 800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 18th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $34.60 per share, with a total value of $27,680.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 216,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,486,194.40. This trade represents a 0.37% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 9.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in Advantage Solutions by 21.8% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 71,676 shares of the company’s stock valued at $95,000 after acquiring an additional 12,816 shares during the period. Creative Planning purchased a new stake in shares of Advantage Solutions during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its stake in shares of Advantage Solutions by 143.2% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 35,394 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 20,841 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in shares of Advantage Solutions by 220.0% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 30,346 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 20,864 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Advantage Solutions by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,763,633 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,432,000 after buying an additional 21,509 shares in the last quarter. 49.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Advantage Solutions

Advantage Solutions is a leading sales and marketing agency that provides outsourced solutions to consumer packaged goods companies. The firm’s offerings include field sales execution, retail merchandising, in-store and shopper marketing, e-commerce activation and data-driven analytics. By deploying dedicated sales teams alongside proprietary technology, Advantage Solutions helps brands optimize shelf placement, ensure compliance with promotional programs and strengthen consumer engagement.

The company’s service portfolio spans field sales and marketing, retail execution, brand ambassador programs, digital and experiential promotions, and shopper insights.