First American Financial (NYSE:FAF) Rating Increased to Overweight at Barclays

Key Points

• Barclays upgraded First American Financial to an "overweight" rating and lifted its price target to $72, implying roughly a 23.7% upside from the prior close.
• The company beat quarterly expectations with $1.99 EPS (vs. $1.49 est.) and $2.0B revenue (up 21.6% YoY), and analysts now rate the stock an average "Buy" with a consensus price target of $79.00.

First American Financial (NYSE:FAF - Get Free Report) was upgraded by stock analysts at Barclays from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a report released on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $72.00 price target on the insurance provider's stock, up from their prior price target of $70.00. Barclays's price target points to a potential upside of 23.71% from the stock's previous close.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on the stock. Stephens raised shares of First American Financial from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their price target for the company from $70.00 to $81.00 in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on First American Financial from $79.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a "buy" rating on shares of First American Financial in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of First American Financial in a report on Friday, December 26th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded First American Financial from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, March 7th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, First American Financial has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $79.00.

First American Financial Stock Performance

Shares of FAF opened at $58.20 on Monday. First American Financial has a 52-week low of $53.09 and a 52-week high of $71.47. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $64.47 and its 200 day simple moving average is $63.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 1.28.

First American Financial (NYSE:FAF - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The insurance provider reported $1.99 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.49 by $0.50. First American Financial had a return on equity of 11.92% and a net margin of 8.34%.The business had revenue of $2 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.80 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.35 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 21.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that First American Financial will post 5.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at First American Financial

In other First American Financial news, Director Parker S. Kennedy acquired 44,841 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was bought at an average price of $67.85 per share, with a total value of $3,042,461.85. Following the purchase, the director owned 251,552 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,067,803.20. This trade represents a 21.69% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 3.70% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of First American Financial

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Naples Global Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of First American Financial by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Naples Global Advisors LLC now owns 7,500 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $461,000 after buying an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lifted its stake in shares of First American Financial by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 4,850 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $312,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. Inscription Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of First American Financial by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Inscription Capital LLC now owns 7,639 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $469,000 after acquiring an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS boosted its holdings in First American Financial by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 21,500 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,381,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, Danske Bank A S boosted its holdings in First American Financial by 28.6% during the 4th quarter. Danske Bank A S now owns 900 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. 89.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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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