New York State Teachers Retirement System Cuts Holdings in First American Financial Corporation $FAF

New York State Teachers Retirement System reduced its position in shares of First American Financial Corporation (NYSE:FAF) by 7.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 103,337 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 8,501 shares during the quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System owned 0.10% of First American Financial worth $6,230,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of FAF. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of First American Financial during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its stake in First American Financial by 1,107.5% in the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 483 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 443 shares in the last quarter. Danske Bank A S acquired a new stake in First American Financial in the 3rd quarter worth about $45,000. IFP Advisors Inc increased its stake in First American Financial by 568.8% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 749 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 637 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SHP Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of First American Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $51,000. 89.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

First American Financial Price Performance

First American Financial stock opened at $71.04 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $67.90 and a 200-day simple moving average of $65.17. The stock has a market cap of $7.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 1.23. First American Financial Corporation has a 1-year low of $53.09 and a 1-year high of $71.93.

First American Financial (NYSE:FAF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The insurance provider reported $1.33 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.27. First American Financial had a return on equity of 12.58% and a net margin of 8.73%.The firm had revenue of $1.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.80 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.84 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 16.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that First American Financial Corporation will post 6.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First American Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 8th were paid a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 8th. First American Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.79%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on First American Financial from $87.00 to $84.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Zacks Research cut shares of First American Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of First American Financial from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of First American Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on shares of First American Financial from $80.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $84.00.

Insider Transactions at First American Financial

In other news, SVP Lisa W. Cornehl sold 5,823 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.63, for a total value of $399,632.49. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 29,635 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,033,850.05. The trade was a 16.42% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Margaret M. Mccarthy sold 6,630 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.59, for a total value of $468,011.70. Following the transaction, the director owned 24,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,695,854.16. This trade represents a 21.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 3.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

First American Financial Profile

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.