Ieq Capital LLC Raises Stock Holdings in First American Financial Co. (NYSE:FAF)

Ieq Capital LLC increased its position in shares of First American Financial Co. (NYSE:FAF) by 329.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 27,544 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 21,127 shares during the quarter. Ieq Capital LLC’s holdings in First American Financial were worth $1,720,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of 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 during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of First American Financial by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 3,247 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $203,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP increased its position in shares of First American Financial by 2,868.5% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 125,180 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $7,729,000 after purchasing an additional 120,963 shares during the period. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. raised its position in First American Financial by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 1,530,977 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $95,594,000 after acquiring an additional 37,866 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Entropy Technologies LP bought a new stake in shares of First American Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $593,000. 89.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Dennis J. Gilmore sold 111,971 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.60, for a total value of $7,121,355.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 3.70% of the company’s stock.

First American Financial Price Performance

Shares of FAF opened at $63.44 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.53 billion, a PE ratio of 50.75 and a beta of 1.33. First American Financial Co. has a one year low of $51.60 and a one year high of $70.92. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $62.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $64.11.

First American Financial (NYSE:FAF) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The insurance provider reported $1.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. Analysts anticipate that First American Financial Co. will post 5.35 earnings per share for the current year.

First American Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a $0.54 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $2.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.40%. First American Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 172.80%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

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.