First American Financial (NYSE:FAF) Rating Lowered to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of First American Financial (NYSE:FAF - Free Report) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Friday.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on FAF. Stephens upped their target price on shares of First American Financial from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of First American Financial from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of First American Financial from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, First American Financial presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $75.00.

First American Financial Stock Performance

Shares of FAF stock traded down $0.11 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $61.14. 592,398 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 657,355. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $62.38 and its 200-day simple moving average is $63.47. The firm has a market cap of $6.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.91 and a beta of 1.29. First American Financial has a twelve month low of $51.85 and a twelve month high of $70.92.

First American Financial (NYSE:FAF - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The insurance provider reported $0.84 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.53 billion. First American Financial had a return on equity of 9.35% and a net margin of 2.14%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.45 EPS. Analysts forecast that First American Financial will post 5.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Lisa W. Cornehl sold 3,057 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.49, for a total value of $200,202.93. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 23,825 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,560,299.25. This trade represents a 11.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Dennis J. Gilmore sold 111,971 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.60, for a total value of $7,121,355.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 494,574 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $31,454,906.40. This trade represents a 18.46 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 127,707 shares of company stock valued at $8,136,565. Company insiders own 3.70% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First American Financial

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Alpine Bank Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of First American Financial in the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in shares of First American Financial by 66.9% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 524 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. Richardson Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of First American Financial during the 1st quarter worth approximately $39,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its stake in shares of First American Financial by 57.6% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 670 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 245 shares during the period. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in First American Financial by 645.7% during the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 962 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $63,000 after acquiring an additional 833 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.05% 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.