First American Financial Co. (NYSE:FAF) Shares Sold by HM Payson & Co.

HM Payson & Co. lessened its stake in First American Financial Co. (NYSE:FAF) by 51.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 500 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 520 shares during the quarter. HM Payson & Co.’s holdings in First American Financial were worth $31,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of FAF. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in First American Financial by 3.1% in the 4th 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 during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in First American Financial by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,700,903 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $112,306,000 after purchasing an additional 12,668 shares during the period. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. raised its holdings in First American Financial by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 1,530,977 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $95,594,000 after purchasing an additional 37,866 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP acquired a new position in First American Financial in the 3rd quarter worth about $95,638,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in First American Financial by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,124,853 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $70,236,000 after purchasing an additional 6,708 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.05% of the company’s stock.

First American Financial Price Performance

Shares of First American Financial stock opened at $62.46 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $62.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $64.34. First American Financial Co. has a 12 month low of $51.60 and a 12 month high of $70.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.97 and a beta of 1.34.

First American Financial (NYSE:FAF) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The insurance provider reported $1.35 EPS 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, research analysts anticipate that First American Financial Co. will post 5.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First American Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a $0.54 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.46%. First American Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 172.80%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on FAF. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on First American Financial from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Stephens upped their price target on First American Financial from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $74.50.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Lisa W. Cornehl sold 3,057 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was 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 directly owns 23,825 shares in the company, valued at $1,560,299.25. This represents a 11.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Mark Edward Seaton sold 12,679 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.28, for a total value of $815,006.12. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 195,812 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,586,795.36. This trade represents a 6.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 127,707 shares of company stock worth $8,136,565 over the last ninety days. Corporate 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.