DnB Asset Management AS Increases Stock Holdings in Fidelity National Financial, Inc. (NYSE:FNF)

DnB Asset Management AS boosted its stake in Fidelity National Financial, Inc. (NYSE:FNF) by 7.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 43,997 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,860 shares during the quarter. DnB Asset Management AS’s holdings in Fidelity National Financial were worth $2,470,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of FNF. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its stake in shares of Fidelity National Financial by 50.6% in the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 622 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 209 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Fidelity National Financial in the 4th quarter worth $37,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Fidelity National Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $52,000. UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake in shares of Fidelity National Financial by 68.9% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,157 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $65,000 after acquiring an additional 472 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Fidelity National Financial by 19.9% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,345 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $75,000 after acquiring an additional 223 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.17% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Halim Dhanidina sold 2,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.85, for a total transaction of $153,580.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,716 shares in the company, valued at $916,872.60. This represents a 14.35 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 5.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FNF has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Stephens increased their price target on Fidelity National Financial from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 24th. Barclays increased their target price on Fidelity National Financial from $61.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 24th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Fidelity National Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of Fidelity National Financial from $64.00 to $63.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Fidelity National Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $76.00 to $77.00 in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Fidelity National Financial presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $70.40.

Fidelity National Financial Stock Performance

FNF stock opened at $65.98 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $61.04 and its 200 day simple moving average is $60.17. Fidelity National Financial, Inc. has a 12-month low of $46.85 and a 12-month high of $66.53. The firm has a market cap of $18.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.19 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a current ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

Fidelity National Financial (NYSE:FNF) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The financial services provider reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.11. Fidelity National Financial had a net margin of 9.28% and a return on equity of 15.36%. The company had revenue of $3.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.33 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.75 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Fidelity National Financial, Inc. will post 6.28 EPS for the current year.

Fidelity National Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.03%. Fidelity National Financial’s payout ratio is currently 43.01%.

Fidelity National Financial Profile

Fidelity National Financial, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides various insurance products in the United States. The company operates through Title, F&G, and Corporate and Other segments. It offers title insurance, escrow, and other title related services, including trust activities, trustee sales guarantees, recordings and reconveyances, and home warranty products.