Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Grows Position in First American Financial Corporation $FAF

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in First American Financial Corporation (NYSE:FAF) by 4.1% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 4,293,573 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 168,706 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP’s holdings in First American Financial were worth $275,816,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. boosted its position in First American Financial by 2,887.5% during the third quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 478 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 462 shares during the last quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in First American Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at about $35,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp acquired a new stake in First American Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at about $36,000. First Horizon Corp acquired a new stake in First American Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Tripletail Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in First American Financial in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $41,000. 89.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded First American Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on First American Financial from $79.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Barclays lifted their price objective on First American Financial from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Stephens raised First American Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $70.00 to $81.00 in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of First American Financial in a report on Friday, December 26th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $78.50.

First American Financial Trading Down 1.9%

Shares of NYSE:FAF opened at $67.71 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.27, a PEG ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 1.25. First American Financial Corporation has a 12-month low of $53.09 and a 12-month high of $71.47. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $64.62 and a 200 day moving average price of $64.10.

First American Financial (NYSE:FAF) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The insurance provider reported $1.99 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by $0.50. The company had revenue of $2 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.80 billion. First American Financial had a net margin of 8.34% and a return on equity of 11.92%. First American Financial’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.35 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that First American Financial Corporation will post 5.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First American Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 9th will be issued a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 9th. First American Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.61%.

Insider Activity at First American Financial

In related news, Director Parker S. Kennedy acquired 44,841 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $67.85 per share, with a total value of $3,042,461.85. Following the transaction, the director owned 251,552 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,067,803.20. This trade represents a 21.69% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 3.70% of the company’s stock.

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.