Insider Selling: First American Financial Co. (NYSE:FAF) CFO Sells $815,006.12 in Stock

First American Financial Co. (NYSE:FAF) CFO Mark Edward Seaton sold 12,679 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.28, for a total value of $815,006.12. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 195,812 shares in the company, valued at $12,586,795.36. The trade was a 6.08 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.

First American Financial Stock Up 1.9 %

NYSE:FAF opened at $65.65 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $62.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $64.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.76 billion, a PE ratio of 52.52 and a beta of 1.33. First American Financial Co. has a twelve month low of $51.60 and a twelve month high of $70.92.

First American Financial (NYSE:FAF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The insurance provider reported $1.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.22. First American Financial had a return on equity of 9.35% and a net margin of 2.14%. On average, analysts anticipate that First American Financial Co. will post 5.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First American Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $0.54 dividend. This represents a $2.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. First American Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 172.80%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on FAF. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price 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 increased their target price 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 investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $74.50.

Institutional Trading of First American Financial

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in First American Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $385,000. Forum Financial Management LP bought a new position in First American Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $235,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio raised its position in First American Financial by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 36,697 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,291,000 after purchasing an additional 389 shares during the last quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. raised its position in First American Financial by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. now owns 161,257 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $10,069,000 after purchasing an additional 3,850 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in First American Financial by 16.1% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 386,546 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $24,136,000 after purchasing an additional 53,633 shares during the last quarter. 89.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.