First American Financial Corporation (NYSE:FAF) Shares Sold by Natixis Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Natixis Advisors LLC has decreased its stake in First American Financial Corporation by 4.3%, holding 328,129 shares valued at approximately $21.5 million as of its latest SEC filing.
• First American Financial reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $1.53, exceeding analysts' expectations of $1.40, with a year-over-year revenue increase of 14.2% to $1.84 billion.
• The company announced a share buyback plan allowing it to repurchase $300 million worth of shares, indicating confidence in its stock value, coupled with a recent quarterly dividend of $0.54 per share.

Natixis Advisors LLC reduced its position in First American Financial Corporation (NYSE:FAF - Free Report) by 4.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 328,129 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 14,840 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC owned 0.32% of First American Financial worth $21,535,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FAF. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in First American Financial by 18.0% in the 4th quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,510 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $94,000 after acquiring an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in shares of First American Financial by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 84,344 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $5,266,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares during the period. Townsquare Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of First American Financial by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 9,992 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $624,000 after purchasing an additional 251 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of First American Financial by 23.9% during the 1st 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 last quarter. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina raised its position in shares of First American Financial by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 43,932 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $2,743,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. 89.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

First American Financial Price Performance

FAF traded up $0.55 on Friday, reaching $60.60. 870,170 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,666,445. First American Financial Corporation has a twelve month low of $53.09 and a twelve month high of $70.92. The stock has a market cap of $6.17 billion, a PE ratio of 33.48 and a beta of 1.24. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $58.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $60.95.

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 for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $1.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.78 billion. First American Financial had a return on equity of 10.41% and a net margin of 2.90%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.27 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that First American Financial Corporation will post 5.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First American Financial announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, July 23rd that authorizes the company to repurchase $300.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the insurance provider to repurchase up to 5.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

First American Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 9th were paid a dividend of $0.54 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 9th. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. First American Financial's payout ratio is 119.34%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barclays lowered their price objective on First American Financial from $72.00 to $70.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted 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. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut First American Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus 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.