Bank of Nova Scotia Takes $1.52 Million Position in First American Financial Co. (NYSE:FAF)

Bank of Nova Scotia purchased a new stake in shares of First American Financial Co. (NYSE:FAF - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 24,273 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,516,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in First American Financial by 66.9% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 524 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 210 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its stake in shares of First American Financial by 57.6% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 670 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 245 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position 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 worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 277 shares in the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of First American Financial during the third quarter worth about $75,000. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its stake in First American Financial by 14.8% during the 4th 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 period. 89.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FAF has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Stephens lifted their price objective on shares of First American Financial from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of First American Financial from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $75.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th.

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Insider Activity

In related news, Director Dennis J. Gilmore sold 111,971 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.60, for a total value of $7,121,355.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 494,574 shares in the company, valued at $31,454,906.40. This trade represents a 18.46 % 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 transaction, the senior vice president now owns 23,825 shares in the company, 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 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 3.70% of the company's stock.

First American Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE FAF traded down $1.80 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $58.96. 873,360 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 651,526. The company's 50 day moving average is $63.44 and its 200 day moving average is $63.99. First American Financial Co. has a one year low of $51.60 and a one year high of $70.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.08 billion, a PE ratio of 47.17 and a beta of 1.23.

First American Financial (NYSE:FAF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The insurance provider reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.13 by $0.22. First American Financial had a net margin of 2.14% and a return on equity of 9.35%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that First American Financial Co. will post 5.35 EPS for the current year.

First American Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a dividend of $0.54 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.66%. First American Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.