Gotham Asset Management LLC Sells 1,410 Shares of First American Financial Co. (NYSE:FAF)

Gotham Asset Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of First American Financial Co. (NYSE:FAF) by 4.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 27,685 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 1,410 shares during the period. Gotham Asset Management LLC’s holdings in First American Financial were worth $1,729,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Focus Partners Wealth bought a new position in First American Financial in the fourth quarter worth approximately $240,000. FJ Capital Management LLC bought a new position in First American Financial in the fourth quarter worth approximately $3,995,000. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP raised its stake in First American Financial by 53.6% in the fourth quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP now owns 9,827 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $614,000 after buying an additional 3,431 shares in the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its stake in First American Financial by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 7,372 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $460,000 after buying an additional 442 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Caxton Associates LP bought a new position in First American Financial in the fourth quarter worth approximately $368,000. Institutional investors own 89.05% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Mark Edward Seaton sold 12,679 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.28, for a total transaction of $815,006.12. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 195,812 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,586,795.36. The trade was a 6.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale 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 on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.49, for a total transaction of $200,202.93. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 23,825 shares in the company, valued at $1,560,299.25. This trade represents a 11.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 3.70% of the company’s stock.

First American Financial Trading Up 1.3%

NYSE FAF opened at $60.92 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $61.87 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $63.29. First American Financial Co. has a 12-month low of $51.85 and a 12-month high of $70.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.74 and a beta of 1.29.

First American Financial (NYSE:FAF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The insurance provider reported $0.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.53 billion. First American Financial had a net margin of 2.14% and a return on equity of 9.35%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.45 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that First American Financial Co. will post 5.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First American Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.54 per share. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 9th. First American Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 143.05%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FAF has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of First American Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of First American Financial from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Stephens boosted their price objective 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. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on shares of First American Financial from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $75.00.

First American Financial 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.