Sanctuary Advisors LLC Purchases Shares of 14,179 First American Financial Corporation $FAF

Key Points

• Sanctuary Advisors initiated a position in First American Financial, purchasing 14,179 shares valued at approximately $973,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 89.05% of the company.
• First American Financial reported quarterly EPS of $2.08, exceeding the $1.80 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 15% year over year to $2.11 billion.
• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating with an average price target of $84.60, compared with the stock’s reported price of $74.62.

Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new position in First American Financial Corporation (NYSE:FAF - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 14,179 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $973,000.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in First American Financial in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $643,570,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in shares of First American Financial by 4,485,375.2% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 5,786,263 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $355,508,000 after acquiring an additional 5,786,134 shares during the last quarter. Davis Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of First American Financial in the second quarter worth $102,885,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in First American Financial during the fourth quarter worth $75,011,000. Finally, Mendon Capital Advisors Corp bought a new position in First American Financial during the first quarter worth $71,680,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.05% of the company's stock.

First American Financial Price Performance

Shares of FAF stock opened at $74.62 on Friday. First American Financial Corporation has a one year low of $56.20 and a one year high of $79.87. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $71.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $67.90. The stock has a market cap of $7.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 1.22.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on FAF shares. Zacks Research downgraded shares of First American Financial from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of First American Financial from $80.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $84.00 price objective on shares of First American Financial in a research report on Friday, June 12th. 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 downgraded First American Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Seven 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 has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $84.60.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Steven A. Adams sold 3,253 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.99, for a total value of $243,942.47. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 10,234 shares of the company's stock, valued at $767,447.66. This represents 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 this hyperlink. 3.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

First American Financial Profile

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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