Advantage Solutions (NASDAQ:ADV) Shares Down 3.3%

Shares of Advantage Solutions Inc. (NASDAQ:ADV) traded down 3.3% during trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $4.35 and last traded at $4.36. 231,281 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 65% from the average session volume of 668,038 shares. The stock had previously closed at $4.51.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, TheStreet upgraded shares of Advantage Solutions from a “d” rating to a “c-” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Advantage Solutions presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $3.43.

Advantage Solutions Stock Up 1.4 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a current ratio of 1.87. The company’s 50 day moving average is $4.15 and its 200 day moving average is $3.57.

Advantage Solutions (NASDAQ:ADV) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 29th. The company reported $0.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.14 by ($0.08). Advantage Solutions had a negative return on equity of 4.51% and a negative net margin of 1.35%. The firm had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.14 billion. As a group, analysts forecast that Advantage Solutions Inc. will post 0.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Advantage Solutions

In related news, COO Jack Anthony Pestello bought 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $3.87 per share, for a total transaction of $38,700.00. Following the acquisition, the chief operating officer now owns 146,279 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $566,099.73. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 5.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Advantage Solutions

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Advantage Solutions by 293.0% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 42,986 shares of the company’s stock valued at $186,000 after acquiring an additional 32,049 shares during the period. Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new position in Advantage Solutions during the fourth quarter worth about $55,000. Atairos Partners GP Inc. raised its stake in Advantage Solutions by 114.7% during the fourth quarter. Atairos Partners GP Inc. now owns 4,253,728 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,398,000 after acquiring an additional 2,272,428 shares in the last quarter. Kent Lake Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Advantage Solutions by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Kent Lake Capital LLC now owns 1,615,260 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,847,000 after buying an additional 15,260 shares during the period. Finally, BlackBarn Capital Partners LP acquired a new position in shares of Advantage Solutions in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,956,000. 49.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Advantage Solutions Company Profile

Advantage Solutions Inc provides business solutions to consumer goods manufacturers and retailers in North America and internationally. It operates in two segments, Sales and Marketing. The Sales segment offers brand-centric services, such as headquarter relationship management; analytics, insights, and intelligence; and brand-centric merchandising services.