North Star Asset Management Inc. Increases Stake in First Advantage Co. $FA

North Star Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of First Advantage Co. (NYSE:FA) by 60.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 253,661 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 95,425 shares during the period. North Star Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in First Advantage were worth $3,686,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in FA. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its stake in shares of First Advantage by 724.5% during the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 5,256,511 shares of the company’s stock valued at $87,311,000 after buying an additional 4,618,946 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its position in First Advantage by 8,338.6% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 777,275 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,294,000 after purchasing an additional 768,064 shares in the last quarter. Sunriver Management LLC boosted its position in First Advantage by 46.1% during the third quarter. Sunriver Management LLC now owns 2,350,614 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,176,000 after purchasing an additional 741,913 shares in the last quarter. Cat Rock Capital Management LP boosted its position in First Advantage by 29.7% during the third quarter. Cat Rock Capital Management LP now owns 3,068,369 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,222,000 after purchasing an additional 702,452 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC bought a new stake in First Advantage during the second quarter valued at about $7,107,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.91% of the company’s stock.

First Advantage Price Performance

Shares of NYSE FA opened at $15.42 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 3.85 and a current ratio of 3.85. The company has a market cap of $2.65 billion, a PE ratio of 514.00 and a beta of 1.13. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $12.59 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $13.01. First Advantage Co. has a fifty-two week low of $8.82 and a fifty-two week high of $19.01.

First Advantage (NYSE:FA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.21 by $0.05. First Advantage had a return on equity of 13.16% and a net margin of 0.65%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.17 earnings per share. First Advantage has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.150-1.250 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that First Advantage Co. will post 0.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on FA shares. Barclays raised their price objective on First Advantage from $15.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $18.00 price objective on First Advantage in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Citigroup raised their price objective on First Advantage from $15.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on First Advantage from $15.00 to $18.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $18.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other First Advantage news, President Joelle M. Smith sold 23,334 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.00, for a total value of $350,010.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president owned 19,393 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $290,895. This trade represents a 54.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 4.40% of the company’s stock.

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.