GAMMA Investing LLC Cuts Stock Position in First American Financial Corporation $FAF

GAMMA Investing LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of First American Financial Corporation (NYSE:FAF) by 28.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 954 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 373 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC’s holdings in First American Financial were worth $59,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Boston Partners lifted its holdings in shares of First American Financial by 23.0% during the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,692,258 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $307,181,000 after buying an additional 876,874 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in First American Financial by 4.7% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,150,660 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $272,406,000 after acquiring an additional 187,144 shares during the period. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. grew its position in shares of First American Financial by 6.2% during the first quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 1,626,142 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $106,724,000 after purchasing an additional 95,165 shares in the last quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. grew its position in shares of First American Financial by 1.1% during the second quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. now owns 1,217,263 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $74,729,000 after purchasing an additional 13,286 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of First American Financial by 3.2% during the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,063,232 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $69,780,000 after purchasing an additional 32,610 shares in the last quarter. 89.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on FAF. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of First American Financial in a research report on Saturday, September 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on First American Financial from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of First American Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on First American Financial from $72.00 to $70.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $75.00.

First American Financial Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of First American Financial stock opened at $64.37 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.55 billion, a PE ratio of 35.56 and a beta of 1.27. First American Financial Corporation has a twelve month low of $53.09 and a twelve month high of $70.92. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $64.77 and its 200 day moving average price is $61.53.

First American Financial (NYSE:FAF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The insurance provider reported $1.53 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $1.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.78 billion. First American Financial had a net margin of 2.90% and a return on equity of 10.41%. First American Financial’s quarterly revenue was up 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.27 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that First American Financial Corporation will post 5.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First American Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 22nd were issued a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 22nd. This is a positive change from First American Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. First American Financial’s payout ratio is currently 121.55%.

First American Financial announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Wednesday, July 23rd that allows the company to repurchase $300.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the insurance provider to buy up to 5.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other First American Financial news, Director Margaret M. Mccarthy sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.63, for a total value of $229,705.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 28,095 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,843,874.85. This represents a 11.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 3.70% 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.