Victory Capital Management Inc. Boosts Stake in First American Financial Co. (NYSE:FAF)

Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of First American Financial Co. (NYSE:FAF) by 3.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,573,788 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 78,022 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in First American Financial were worth $160,707,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in First American Financial by 66.9% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 524 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in First American Financial by 132.3% during the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 625 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 356 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in First American Financial by 57.6% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 670 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 245 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in First American Financial by 34.9% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,071 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 277 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sunbelt Securities Inc. bought a new stake in First American Financial during the third quarter worth about $75,000. 89.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at First American Financial

In related news, SVP Lisa W. Cornehl sold 3,057 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.49, for a total transaction of $200,202.93. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 23,825 shares in the company, valued at $1,560,299.25. The trade was a 11.37 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Dennis J. Gilmore sold 111,971 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.60, for a total value of $7,121,355.60. Following the transaction, the director now owns 494,574 shares in the company, valued at approximately $31,454,906.40. This represents a 18.46 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 127,707 shares of company stock worth $8,136,565 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 3.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on FAF shares. Stephens lifted their price target on First American Financial from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on First American Financial from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $74.50.

First American Financial Trading Up 1.6 %

NYSE FAF opened at $64.50 on Thursday. First American Financial Co. has a 1-year low of $51.60 and a 1-year high of $70.92. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $62.69 and a 200-day moving average of $64.29. The firm has a market cap of $6.63 billion, a PE ratio of 51.60 and a beta of 1.34.

First American Financial (NYSE:FAF) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The insurance provider reported $1.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.13 by $0.22. First American Financial had a return on equity of 9.35% and a net margin of 2.14%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that First American Financial Co. will post 5.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First American Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.54 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.35%. First American Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 172.80%.

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.