First American Financial Co. (NYSE:FAF) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

First American Financial Co. (NYSE:FAF) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,710,000 shares, a growth of 61.3% from the February 28th total of 1,060,000 shares. Approximately 1.7% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 592,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.9 days.

First American Financial Stock Performance

First American Financial stock traded down $0.27 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $65.43. 127,215 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 630,958. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $63.88 and its 200 day simple moving average is $64.40. The firm has a market cap of $6.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.27 and a beta of 1.34. First American Financial has a 52 week low of $51.60 and a 52 week high of $70.92.

First American Financial (NYSE:FAF) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The insurance provider reported $1.35 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. Research analysts forecast that First American Financial will post 5.35 earnings per share for the current year.

First American Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a dividend of $0.54 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $2.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.30%. First American Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 172.80%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on FAF. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on First American Financial from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Stephens raised their price target on shares of First American Financial from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Mark Edward Seaton sold 12,679 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.28, for a total transaction of $815,006.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 195,812 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,586,795.36. The trade was a 6.08 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Lisa W. Cornehl sold 3,057 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.49, for a total value of $200,202.93. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 23,825 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,560,299.25. The trade was a 11.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 127,707 shares of company stock worth $8,136,565 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 3.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First American Financial

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bar Harbor Wealth Management lifted its position in First American Financial by 43.6% during the fourth quarter. Bar Harbor Wealth Management now owns 96,627 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $6,033,000 after purchasing an additional 29,324 shares during the period. Barclays PLC increased its stake in First American Financial by 15.2% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 60,821 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $4,016,000 after acquiring an additional 8,047 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in First American Financial by 5.1% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 214,820 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $14,180,000 after purchasing an additional 10,489 shares in the last quarter. Oak Thistle LLC bought a new stake in First American Financial during the fourth quarter worth $1,476,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of 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 valued at $112,306,000 after purchasing an additional 12,668 shares during the last quarter. 89.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.