Heartland Advisors Inc. Purchases Shares of 21,143 First American Financial Corporation $FAF

Key Points

• Heartland Advisors purchased 21,143 shares of First American Financial in the second quarter, valued at approximately $1.45 million. Institutional investors collectively own 89.05% of the company.
• First American Financial exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $2.08 in EPS versus the $1.80 consensus and $2.11 billion in revenue, up 15% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains favorable, with seven Buy ratings and one Hold rating, producing a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $84.60 versus the stock’s $71.78 opening price.

Heartland Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of First American Financial Corporation (NYSE:FAF - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 21,143 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,450,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. grew its stake in First American Financial by 616.4% during the first quarter. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. now owns 437 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 376 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its holdings in First American Financial by 1,107.5% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 483 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 443 shares during the period. Danske Bank A S bought a new stake in First American Financial in the third quarter valued at $45,000. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its position in shares of First American Financial by 568.8% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 749 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 637 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SHP Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of First American Financial during the 4th quarter worth about $51,000. 89.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at First American Financial

In other news, CAO Steven A. Adams sold 3,253 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.99, for a total value of $243,942.47. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 10,234 shares of the company's stock, valued at $767,447.66. The trade was a 24.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 3.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

First American Financial Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE FAF opened at $71.78 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $71.45 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $67.67. First American Financial Corporation has a 1-year low of $56.20 and a 1-year high of $79.87. The firm has a market cap of $7.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 1.22.

First American Financial (NYSE:FAF - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The insurance provider reported $2.08 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.80 by $0.28. First American Financial had a return on equity of 13.31% and a net margin of 9.33%.The company had revenue of $2.11 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.03 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.53 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 15.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that First American Financial Corporation will post 7.11 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on FAF shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on First American Financial from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Zacks Research cut shares of First American Financial from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Benchmark began coverage on shares of First American Financial in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $85.00 target price on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of First American Financial in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered First American Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, First American Financial has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $84.60.

About First American Financial

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.

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