Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Grows Stake in First American Financial Co. (NYSE:FAF)

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its holdings in shares of First American Financial Co. (NYSE:FAF) by 5.7% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 35,788 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,929 shares during the quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC’s holdings in First American Financial were worth $2,185,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in First American Financial by 1.9% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 10,327 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $630,000 after acquiring an additional 193 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in First American Financial by 82.3% during the 1st quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 505 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 228 shares in the last quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama grew its stake in First American Financial by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 129,570 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $7,910,000 after acquiring an additional 341 shares in the last quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. purchased a new stake in First American Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its stake in First American Financial by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 44,447 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,864,000 after acquiring an additional 440 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.05% of the company’s stock.

First American Financial Price Performance

NYSE:FAF opened at $56.36 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.97 and a beta of 1.28. The company’s 50-day moving average is $54.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $57.26. First American Financial Co. has a 1-year low of $49.55 and a 1-year high of $65.54.

First American Financial (NYSE:FAF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The insurance provider reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.67 by ($0.22). First American Financial had a return on equity of 8.17% and a net margin of 3.64%. The company had revenue of $1.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.42 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.49 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that First American Financial Co. will post 3.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First American Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 10th were issued a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 10th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.76%. First American Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 101.44%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on FAF shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of First American Financial from $67.00 to $63.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of 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. Finally, Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $72.00 target price on shares of First American Financial in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $68.25.

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.