AlphaQuest LLC Increases Stake in First American Financial Co. (NYSE:FAF)

AlphaQuest LLC increased its position in shares of First American Financial Co. (NYSE:FAF) by 49,371.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,463 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 3,456 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC’s holdings in First American Financial were worth $216,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in shares of First American Financial by 66.9% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 524 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 210 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its stake in shares of First American Financial by 57.6% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 670 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 245 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of First American Financial by 34.9% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,071 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $67,000 after buying an additional 277 shares during the period. Sunbelt Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of First American Financial during the third quarter valued at $75,000. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its stake in First American Financial by 14.8% in the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,340 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $84,000 after purchasing an additional 173 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.05% of the company’s stock.

First American Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE FAF opened at $63.86 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $6.56 billion, a PE ratio of 51.09 and a beta of 1.34. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $62.82 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $64.32. First American Financial Co. has a fifty-two week low of $51.60 and a fifty-two week high of $70.92.

First American Financial (NYSE:FAF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The insurance provider reported $1.35 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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, 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 firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a $0.54 dividend. This represents a $2.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. First American Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 172.80%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Mark Edward Seaton sold 12,679 shares of First American Financial 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 sale, the chief financial officer now 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Lisa W. Cornehl sold 3,057 shares of First American Financial stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.49, for a total value of $200,202.93. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 23,825 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,560,299.25. This trade represents a 11.37 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 127,707 shares of company stock valued at $8,136,565 over the last quarter. 3.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on FAF. Stephens lifted their target price on First American Financial from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on First American Financial from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th.

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.