First American Financial (FAF) Competitors

First American Financial (NYSE:FAF) and Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) are both mid-cap finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, earnings, risk, valuation, analyst recommendations, profitability, institutional ownership and media sentiment.

Which has more risk and volatility, FAF or ESNT?

First American Financial has a beta of 1.27, meaning that its share price is 27% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Essent Group has a beta of 0.88, meaning that its share price is 12% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Which has higher valuation and earnings, FAF or ESNT?

Essent Group has lower revenue, but higher earnings than First American Financial. Essent Group is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than First American Financial, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
First American Financial	$6.13B	0.99	$131.10M	$1.81	33.03
Essent Group	$1.24B	4.77	$729.40M	$6.85	8.79

Do analysts rate FAF or ESNT?

First American Financial presently has a consensus price target of $75.25, indicating a potential upside of 25.86%. Essent Group has a consensus price target of $65.67, indicating a potential upside of 9.05%. Given First American Financial's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts plainly believe First American Financial is more favorable than Essent Group.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
First American Financial	1 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	3 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.40
Essent Group	1 Sell rating(s)	4 Hold rating(s)	4 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.33

Is FAF or ESNT a better dividend stock?

First American Financial pays an annual dividend of $2.20 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.7%. Essent Group pays an annual dividend of $1.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.1%. First American Financial pays out 121.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Essent Group pays out 18.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. First American Financial has increased its dividend for 15 consecutive years and Essent Group has increased its dividend for 6 consecutive years. First American Financial is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Does the media refer more to FAF or ESNT?

In the previous week, First American Financial had 8 more articles in the media than Essent Group. MarketBeat recorded 13 mentions for First American Financial and 5 mentions for Essent Group. Essent Group's average media sentiment score of 0.63 beat First American Financial's score of 0.17 indicating that Essent Group is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
First American Financial	2 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	1 Neutral mention(s)	2 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral
Essent Group	2 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	0 Neutral mention(s)	1 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Do institutionals and insiders believe in FAF or ESNT?

89.1% of First American Financial shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 93.0% of Essent Group shares are held by institutional investors. 3.7% of First American Financial shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 2.9% of Essent Group shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Is FAF or ESNT more profitable?

Essent Group has a net margin of 56.36% compared to First American Financial's net margin of 2.90%. Essent Group's return on equity of 12.66% beat First American Financial's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
First American Financial	2.90%	10.41%	3.33%
Essent Group	56.36%	12.66%	9.98%

Summary

Essent Group beats First American Financial on 10 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.