Allianz Asset Management GmbH Has $11.70 Million Position in First American Financial Corporation $FAF

Allianz Asset Management GmbH grew its stake in shares of First American Financial Corporation (NYSE:FAF) by 37.6% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 190,551 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 52,041 shares during the period. Allianz Asset Management GmbH’s holdings in First American Financial were worth $11,698,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Boston Partners grew its stake in First American Financial by 23.0% in the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,692,258 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $307,181,000 after purchasing an additional 876,874 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of First American Financial by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,150,660 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $272,406,000 after buying an additional 187,144 shares during the last quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. grew its stake in shares of First American Financial by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. now owns 1,217,263 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $74,729,000 after buying an additional 13,286 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in shares of First American Financial by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,063,232 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $69,780,000 after buying an additional 32,610 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in First American Financial by 51.2% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 671,616 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $44,058,000 after buying an additional 227,382 shares during the last quarter. 89.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First American Financial Trading Up 2.3%

NYSE:FAF opened at $61.13 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.22 billion, a PE ratio of 33.77 and a beta of 1.27. First American Financial Corporation has a 1 year low of $53.09 and a 1 year high of $70.92. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $64.44 and its 200 day simple moving average is $61.06.

First American Financial (NYSE:FAF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The insurance provider reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $1.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.78 billion. First American Financial had a net margin of 2.90% and a return on equity of 10.41%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.27 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that First American Financial Corporation will post 5.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First American Financial announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, July 23rd that authorizes the company to repurchase $300.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the insurance provider to purchase up to 5.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

First American Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 22nd were issued a $0.55 dividend. This is an increase from First American Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 22nd. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. First American Financial’s payout ratio is 121.55%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Margaret M. Mccarthy sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.63, for a total value of $229,705.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 28,095 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,843,874.85. This represents a 11.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 3.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of First American Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of First American Financial in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of First American Financial from $70.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “cautious” rating in a research report on Monday, October 6th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on First American Financial from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $75.25.

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.