Strs Ohio Increases Position in First American Financial Corporation $FAF

Key Points

• Strs Ohio sharply boosted its stake in First American Financial, increasing holdings by 1,287.4% in the first quarter to 32,327 shares worth about $1.95 million.
• Wall Street sentiment remains mostly positive, with six analysts rating FAF a Buy and one Hold, and an average price target of $83.25.
• The company posted solid quarterly results, beating EPS and revenue estimates, while also paying a $0.55 quarterly dividend that annualizes to a 3.1% yield.

Strs Ohio grew its holdings in shares of First American Financial Corporation (NYSE:FAF - Free Report) by 1,287.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 32,327 shares of the insurance provider's stock after buying an additional 29,997 shares during the quarter. Strs Ohio's holdings in First American Financial were worth $1,949,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of FAF. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in shares of First American Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its holdings in First American Financial by 1,107.5% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 483 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 443 shares in the last quarter. Danske Bank A S purchased a new stake in First American Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at about $45,000. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its position in First American Financial by 568.8% in the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 749 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 637 shares during the period. Finally, SHP Wealth Management bought a new position in First American Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $51,000. 89.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on FAF shares. Barclays reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of First American Financial in a research report on Tuesday. Truist Financial increased their price objective on First American Financial from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Zacks Research downgraded First American Financial from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $84.00 target price on shares of First American Financial in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut First American Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $83.25.

First American Financial Stock Performance

FAF traded up $1.60 on Tuesday, hitting $71.69. The company had a trading volume of 49,170 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,033,001. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $67.89 and a 200-day moving average price of $65.12. First American Financial Corporation has a 12-month low of $53.09 and a 12-month high of $71.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.00, a P/E/G ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 1.23.

First American Financial (NYSE:FAF - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The insurance provider reported $1.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.27. First American Financial had a return on equity of 12.58% and a net margin of 8.73%.The firm had revenue of $1.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.80 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.84 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 16.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that First American Financial Corporation will post 6.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First American Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 8th were issued a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 8th. First American Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.79%.

Insider Transactions at First American Financial

In related news, Director Margaret M. Mccarthy sold 6,630 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.59, for a total value of $468,011.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 24,024 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,695,854.16. This trade represents a 21.63% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Lisa W. Cornehl sold 5,823 shares of First American Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.63, for a total transaction of $399,632.49. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 29,635 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,033,850.05. This trade represents a 16.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 3.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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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