StockNews.com Initiates Coverage on Performant Financial (NASDAQ:PFMT)

Equities research analysts at StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Performant Financial (NASDAQ:PFMT) in a research note issued to investors on Sunday. The brokerage set a “sell” rating on the business services provider’s stock.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on PFMT. Craig Hallum upgraded shares of Performant Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. B. Riley decreased their price target on Performant Financial from $8.00 to $7.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 7th.

Performant Financial Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 2.67 and a quick ratio of 2.67. Performant Financial has a 1 year low of $2.37 and a 1 year high of $4.35. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $3.49 and its 200-day simple moving average is $3.37. The firm has a market cap of $278.72 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -35.60 and a beta of 0.09.

Performant Financial (NASDAQ:PFMT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The business services provider reported ($0.03) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $31.52 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.70 million. Performant Financial had a negative return on equity of 10.19% and a negative net margin of 6.74%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.01) earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Performant Financial will post -0.13 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Performant Financial in the third quarter valued at about $53,000. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Performant Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $91,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its position in Performant Financial by 55.6% in the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 69,440 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $260,000 after buying an additional 24,803 shares during the period. CWC Advisors LLC. acquired a new position in shares of Performant Financial during the third quarter worth approximately $271,000. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers boosted its position in shares of Performant Financial by 32.1% in the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 84,953 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $246,000 after acquiring an additional 20,637 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 77.15% of the company’s stock.

About Performant Financial

Performant Financial Corporation provides technology-enabled audit, recovery, and analytics services in the United States. The company identifies improper payments resulting from incorrect coding, procedures that were not medically necessary, incomplete documentation or claims submitted based on outdated fee schedules, and coverage discrepancies; and provides first party call center and other outsourced services.