Invst LLC Purchases Shares of 11,595 First American Financial Corporation $FAF

Key Points

• Invst LLC has invested approximately $761,000 in First American Financial Corporation by purchasing 11,595 shares during the first quarter.
• First American Financial recently reported earnings of $1.53 per share, surpassing expectations, with quarterly revenue of $1.84 billion, a 14.2% increase from the previous year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.55 per share, reflecting a yield of 3.3%, while also initiating a stock repurchase program worth $300 million.

Invst LLC bought a new stake in shares of First American Financial Corporation (NYSE:FAF - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 11,595 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $761,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in First American Financial by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 236,876 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $15,546,000 after purchasing an additional 794 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in First American Financial by 23.9% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,327 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $87,000 after purchasing an additional 256 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its stake in First American Financial by 137.8% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 21,091 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,384,000 after purchasing an additional 12,222 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in First American Financial by 2.8% during the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 132,150 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $8,673,000 after purchasing an additional 3,557 shares during the period. Finally, Bar Harbor Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of First American Financial by 30.5% during the first quarter. Bar Harbor Wealth Management now owns 126,093 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $8,275,000 after buying an additional 29,466 shares during the period. 89.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First American Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE FAF traded up $0.57 during trading on Thursday, reaching $67.40. The stock had a trading volume of 218,875 shares, compared to its average volume of 872,500. The stock has a market cap of $6.86 billion, a PE ratio of 37.25 and a beta of 1.27. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $62.90 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $61.43. First American Financial Corporation has a one year low of $53.09 and a one year high of $70.92.

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

First American Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 22nd will be given a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 22nd. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. This is an increase from First American Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. First American Financial's dividend payout ratio is 119.34%.

First American Financial announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, July 23rd that permits the company to buyback $300.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the insurance provider to buy up to 5.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on FAF shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of First American Financial from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Barclays decreased their price target on First American Financial from $72.00 to $70.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded First American Financial from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $75.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Margaret M. Mccarthy sold 3,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.63, for a total transaction of $229,705.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 28,095 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,843,874.85. This trade represents a 11.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 3.70% of the company's stock.

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.