Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV Trims Stock Position in First American Financial Co. (NYSE:FAF)

Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV reduced its stake in First American Financial Co. (NYSE:FAF) by 13.7% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 35,301 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 5,618 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV’s holdings in First American Financial were worth $1,904,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in First American Financial by 4.3% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,567,038 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $645,118,000 after buying an additional 431,089 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners boosted its holdings in shares of First American Financial by 13.3% in the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,074,181 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $248,237,000 after acquiring an additional 479,618 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of First American Financial by 16.5% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,647,709 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $196,793,000 after acquiring an additional 515,710 shares during the period. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. raised its holdings in First American Financial by 6.4% during the second quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 1,426,821 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $76,977,000 after purchasing an additional 86,330 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in First American Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $76,210,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.05% of the company’s stock.

First American Financial Stock Performance

FAF opened at $65.01 on Tuesday. First American Financial Co. has a one year low of $49.55 and a one year high of $67.88. The company has a market cap of $6.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.11 and a beta of 1.29. The business’s fifty day moving average is $62.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $57.91.

First American Financial (NYSE:FAF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The insurance provider reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.13 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $1.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.62 billion. First American Financial had a net margin of 3.28% and a return on equity of 7.98%. The firm’s revenue was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.35 EPS. On average, analysts predict that First American Financial Co. will post 3.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First American Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Investors of record on Friday, September 20th will be given a dividend of $0.54 per share. This is an increase from First American Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.53. This represents a $2.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 20th. First American Financial’s payout ratio is currently 103.35%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on FAF shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on First American Financial from $66.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Barclays dropped their price objective on First American Financial from $65.00 to $61.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $66.00 target price on shares of First American Financial in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of First American Financial from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, First American Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $66.75.

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.