Versor Investments LP Purchases New Position in First American Financial Co. (NYSE:FAF)

Versor Investments LP bought a new stake in shares of First American Financial Co. (NYSE:FAF - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 4,063 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $254,000.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of First American Financial by 15.7% in the 4th quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 20,568 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,284,000 after purchasing an additional 2,784 shares in the last quarter. First Bank & Trust bought a new position in shares of First American Financial during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $207,000. Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its holdings in First American Financial by 7.3% in the 4th quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 25,060 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,565,000 after acquiring an additional 1,700 shares in the last quarter. Ieq Capital LLC raised its stake in First American Financial by 329.2% during the 4th quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 27,544 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,720,000 after acquiring an additional 21,127 shares during the period. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in First American Financial by 314.7% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,592 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $162,000 after purchasing an additional 1,967 shares in the last quarter. 89.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Lisa W. Cornehl sold 3,057 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.49, for a total transaction of $200,202.93. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 23,825 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,560,299.25. This trade represents a 11.37 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Dennis J. Gilmore sold 111,971 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.60, for a total transaction of $7,121,355.60. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 494,574 shares of the company's stock, valued at $31,454,906.40. This represents a 18.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 127,707 shares of company stock worth $8,136,565. 3.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FAF has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of First American Financial from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Stephens boosted their price objective on First American Financial from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $74.50.

First American Financial Price Performance

Shares of First American Financial stock traded down $1.50 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $63.62. 762,620 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 501,525. The company has a market capitalization of $6.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.89 and a beta of 1.33. First American Financial Co. has a 52-week low of $51.60 and a 52-week high of $70.92. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $62.69 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $64.28.

First American Financial (NYSE:FAF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The insurance provider reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) 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, research analysts predict that First American Financial Co. will post 5.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First American Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $0.54 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.40%. First American Financial's payout ratio is currently 172.80%.

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.