First American Financial Corporation (NYSE:FAF) Given Average Recommendation of “Buy” by Analysts

Shares of First American Financial Corporation (NYSE:FAF) have been given an average rating of “Buy” by the seven ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $82.50.

FAF has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of First American Financial from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of First American Financial from $72.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating on shares of First American Financial in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of First American Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, Stephens upped their target price on shares of First American Financial from $81.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th.

Insider Buying and Selling at First American Financial

In other First American Financial news, SVP Lisa W. Cornehl sold 5,823 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.63, for a total transaction of $399,632.49. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 29,635 shares in the company, valued at $2,033,850.05. This represents a 16.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Margaret M. Mccarthy sold 6,630 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.59, for a total transaction of $468,011.70. Following the sale, the director owned 24,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,695,854.16. The trade was a 21.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 3.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First American Financial

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. raised its stake in shares of First American Financial by 616.4% during the first quarter. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. now owns 437 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 376 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in shares of First American Financial during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of First American Financial by 1,107.5% during the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 483 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 443 shares during the last quarter. Danske Bank A S bought a new position in shares of First American Financial during the third quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc raised its stake in shares of First American Financial by 568.8% during the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 749 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 637 shares during the last quarter. 89.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

First American Financial Price Performance

FAF opened at $66.47 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $66.00 and a 200-day moving average price of $64.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.24. First American Financial has a one year low of $53.09 and a one year high of $71.47.

First American Financial (NYSE:FAF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The insurance provider reported $1.33 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.27. The firm had revenue of $1.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.80 billion. First American Financial had a net margin of 8.73% and a return on equity of 12.58%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.84 EPS. On average, analysts expect that First American Financial will post 6.81 earnings per share for the current year.

First American Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 8th will be given a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 8th. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. First American Financial’s payout ratio is 33.79%.

First American Financial Company Profile

First American Financial Corporation is a leading provider of title insurance, settlement services and diversified real estate-related data and analytics. Headquartered in Santa Ana, California, the company serves customers throughout the United States as well as in Canada, Europe, Latin America and Asia. Its business is built on the underwriting capabilities of its title insurance operations combined with comprehensive closing and escrow services for homebuyers, sellers, mortgage lenders and real estate professionals.

The company’s title insurance segment issues policies that protect property owners and mortgage lenders against defects in titles, liens or encumbrances that can arise during real property transactions.