First American Financial Co. (NYSE:FAF) Stock Position Reduced by Millennium Management LLC

Millennium Management LLC cut its holdings in First American Financial Co. (NYSE:FAF - Free Report) by 2.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,327,393 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 106,574 shares during the quarter. Millennium Management LLC owned 4.20% of First American Financial worth $270,202,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of FAF. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in First American Financial by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,625,017 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $663,426,000 after purchasing an additional 107,925 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its position in First American Financial by 20.8% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,046,743 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $377,559,000 after purchasing an additional 1,042,145 shares in the last quarter. Ariel Investments LLC boosted its position in First American Financial by 9.9% during the fourth quarter. Ariel Investments LLC now owns 3,993,155 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $249,333,000 after purchasing an additional 359,777 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in First American Financial by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,963,516 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $247,481,000 after purchasing an additional 129,863 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in First American Financial by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,573,788 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $160,707,000 after purchasing an additional 78,022 shares in the last quarter. 89.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First American Financial Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of NYSE:FAF traded up $0.77 on Friday, hitting $60.92. The company had a trading volume of 442,843 shares, compared to its average volume of 660,501. The company has a market cap of $6.27 billion, a PE ratio of 48.74 and a beta of 1.29. The business has a 50 day moving average of $61.87 and a 200 day moving average of $63.28. First American Financial Co. has a 52-week low of $51.85 and a 52-week high of $70.92.

First American Financial (NYSE:FAF - Get Free Report) last released its 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 firm had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.53 billion. First American Financial had a return on equity of 9.35% and a net margin of 2.14%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.45 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that First American Financial Co. will post 5.35 EPS for the current year.

First American Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 9th will be paid a $0.54 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 9th. This represents a $2.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.55%. First American Financial's payout ratio is currently 143.05%.

Insider Activity at First American Financial

In other First American Financial news, CFO Mark Edward Seaton sold 12,679 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.28, for a total transaction of $815,006.12. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 195,812 shares in the company, valued at $12,586,795.36. This represents a 6.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Lisa W. Cornehl sold 3,057 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.49, for a total value of $200,202.93. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 23,825 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,560,299.25. This trade represents a 11.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 3.70% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on FAF. Barclays boosted their target price on First American Financial from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. StockNews.com downgraded First American Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Stephens upped their price objective on First American Financial from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on First American Financial from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $75.00.

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.