Northern Trust Corp Increases Holdings in First American Financial Corporation $FAF

Key Points

• Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in First American Financial Corporation (NYSE:FAF) by 3.2%, owning approximately 1,063,232 shares worth $69.78 million.
• First American Financial reported Q2 earnings of $1.53 per share, surpassing estimates, and announced a $300 million stock buyback program, indicating confidence in its share valuation.
• Analysts generally hold a positive outlook on First American Financial with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a price target averaging $75.00.

Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in shares of First American Financial Corporation (NYSE:FAF - Free Report) by 3.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,063,232 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 32,610 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp owned 1.03% of First American Financial worth $69,780,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mariner LLC boosted its holdings in First American Financial by 34.5% in the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 6,964 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $435,000 after acquiring an additional 1,788 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its holdings in First American Financial by 163.0% in the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 7,576 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $473,000 after acquiring an additional 4,695 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its holdings in First American Financial by 243.8% in the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 17,416 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,085,000 after acquiring an additional 12,350 shares in the last quarter. Boothbay Fund Management LLC bought a new position in First American Financial in the fourth quarter worth approximately $468,000. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of First American Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $179,000. Institutional investors own 89.05% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at First American Financial

In other news, Director Margaret M. Mccarthy sold 3,500 shares of First American Financial stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 28,095 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,843,874.85. The trade was a 11.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 3.70% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Barclays dropped their target price 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 raised their target price on First American Financial from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded First American Financial from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, First American Financial currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $75.00.

First American Financial Stock Performance

NYSE:FAF traded down $1.11 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $65.48. The stock had a trading volume of 473,398 shares, compared to its average volume of 586,956. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $61.44 and a 200 day simple moving average of $61.19. First American Financial Corporation has a 12-month low of $53.09 and a 12-month high of $70.92. The stock has a market cap of $6.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.18 and a beta of 1.24.

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 for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $1.84 billion during 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 firm's quarterly revenue was up 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.27 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that First American Financial Corporation will post 5.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First American Financial declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, July 23rd that allows the company to buyback $300.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the insurance provider to reacquire up to 5.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

About First American Financial

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.