Cetera Investment Advisers Purchases 12,222 Shares of First American Financial Corporation (NYSE:FAF)

Key Points

• Cetera Investment Advisers increased its stake in First American Financial Corporation (NYSE:FAF) by 137.8% during the first quarter, holding shares valued at approximately $1.38 million.
• First American Financial recently reported earnings of $1.53 per share, exceeding expectations and showcasing a 14.2% increase in quarterly revenue year-over-year.
• The company initiated a $300 million stock buyback program, signaling confidence in its undervalued shares and indicating strong institutional investor interest, with 89.05% of the stock held by such investors.

Cetera Investment Advisers raised its stake in shares of First American Financial Corporation (NYSE:FAF - Free Report) by 137.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 21,091 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 12,222 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers' holdings in First American Financial were worth $1,384,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ariel Investments LLC increased its holdings in First American Financial by 9.9% in the 4th quarter. Ariel Investments LLC now owns 3,993,155 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $249,333,000 after acquiring an additional 359,777 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in First American Financial by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,963,516 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $247,481,000 after purchasing an additional 129,863 shares during the last quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. lifted its position in First American Financial by 6.2% in the first quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 1,626,142 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $106,724,000 after purchasing an additional 95,165 shares during the last quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. lifted its position in First American Financial by 15.5% in the first quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. now owns 1,203,977 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $79,017,000 after purchasing an additional 161,819 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of First American Financial by 33.1% during the fourth quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,189,162 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $74,251,000 after buying an additional 295,946 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.05% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other First American Financial news, Director Margaret M. Mccarthy sold 3,500 shares of First American Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.63, for a total value of $229,705.00. Following the sale, the director owned 28,095 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,843,874.85. The trade was a 11.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 3.70% of the company's stock.

First American Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE FAF traded down $1.30 during trading on Friday, hitting $64.56. The company had a trading volume of 96,554 shares, compared to its average volume of 904,325. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $59.94 and a 200 day simple moving average of $61.05. First American Financial Corporation has a 12 month low of $53.09 and a 12 month high of $70.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.71 and a beta of 1.24.

First American Financial (NYSE:FAF - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The insurance provider reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.13. First American Financial had a return on equity of 10.41% and a net margin of 2.90%. The company had revenue of $1.84 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.78 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.27 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that First American Financial Corporation will post 5.35 EPS for the current year.

First American Financial announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, July 23rd that authorizes the company to buyback $300.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the insurance provider to reacquire up to 5.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on FAF. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on First American Financial from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Barclays reduced their price target on First American Financial from $72.00 to $70.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised First American Financial from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $75.00.

First American Financial Company Profile

First American Financial Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides financial services. It operates through Title Insurance and Services, and Home Warranty segments. The Title Insurance and Services segment issues title insurance policies on residential and commercial property, as well as offers related products and services internationally.