Sterling Check (NASDAQ:STER) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume - Still a Buy?

Sterling Check Corp. (NASDAQ:STER - Get Free Report) saw unusually-strong trading volume on Tuesday . Approximately 446,802 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 15% from the previous session's volume of 387,604 shares.The stock last traded at $18.00 and had previously closed at $17.15.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Sterling Check from $16.20 to $17.50 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $16.20.

Sterling Check Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.62 and a quick ratio of 1.62. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $16.49 and a 200-day simple moving average of $15.72. The company has a market capitalization of $1.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -103.88 and a beta of 0.49.

Sterling Check (NASDAQ:STER - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported $0.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.27 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $200.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $199.81 million. Sterling Check had a negative net margin of 2.07% and a positive return on equity of 7.73%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.28 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Sterling Check Corp. will post 0.56 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Sterling Check

In related news, major shareholder Melanie Laird sold 300,000 shares of Sterling Check stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.18, for a total value of $5,154,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 10,749,576 shares in the company, valued at $184,677,715.68. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 9.90% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sterling Check

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in STER. Quest Partners LLC raised its position in Sterling Check by 7,540.0% during the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 2,674 shares of the company's stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 2,639 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its stake in Sterling Check by 10.7% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 14,178 shares of the company's stock valued at $210,000 after buying an additional 1,372 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Sterling Check in the 3rd quarter worth about $218,000. Blackstone Inc. purchased a new stake in Sterling Check during the 1st quarter worth approximately $220,000. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Sterling Check during the first quarter valued at approximately $320,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.34% of the company's stock.

About Sterling Check

Sterling Check Corp. provides technology-enabled background and identity verification services in the United States, Canada, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company offers identity verification services, such as telecom and device verification, identification document verification, facial recognition with biometric matching, social security number verification, and live video chat identification proofing; fingerprinting; background checks, including criminal record checks, sex offender registries, civil court records, motor vehicle and driving license records, executive investigations, credit reports, social media searches, and contingent workforce solutions; liens, judgments, and bankruptcies; and sanctions, risk, and compliance checks.