First American Financial (NYSE:FAF) Shares Break Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average – What’s Next?

Shares of First American Financial Corporation (NYSE:FAF) passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Wednesday. The stock has a 200-day moving average of $67.43 and traded as high as $68.45. First American Financial shares last traded at $67.6280, with a volume of 1,211,906 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of First American Financial from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of First American Financial in a report on Friday, October 16th. Benchmark started coverage on shares of First American Financial in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $85.00 target price for the company. Barclays cut their price target on shares of First American Financial from $79.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 23rd. Finally, Truist Financial cut their price target on shares of First American Financial from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 23rd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $81.60.

First American Financial Stock Performance

The stock’s fifty day moving average is $66.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $67.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.21 and a beta of 1.22.

First American Financial (NYSE:FAF) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 21st. The insurance provider reported $1.78 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by ($0.07). First American Financial had a net margin of 9.05% and a return on equity of 13.41%. The firm had revenue of $2.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.10 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.84 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that First American Financial Corporation will post 6.94 earnings per share for the current year.

First American Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.61 per share. This is a boost from First American Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 8th. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. First American Financial’s payout ratio is 34.37%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First American Financial

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in FAF. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in First American Financial in the second quarter worth approximately $643,570,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in First American Financial by 5.6% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,636,464 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $279,529,000 after acquiring an additional 245,279 shares during the last quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. lifted its stake in First American Financial by 1.9% in the second quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. now owns 1,553,234 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $106,537,000 after acquiring an additional 28,534 shares during the last quarter. Davis Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in First American Financial in the second quarter valued at approximately $102,885,000. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in First American Financial by 110.2% in the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,304,820 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $78,668,000 after acquiring an additional 684,117 shares in the last quarter. 89.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About First American Financial

First American Financial Corporation (NYSE: FAF) is a provider of title insurance, settlement services and financial technology solutions for the real estate and mortgage industries. Through its First American Title operations, the company helps protect property owners, lenders and other parties against title defects and related risks during real estate transactions.

The company’s services include title searches and examination, title insurance policies, escrow and closing services, and transaction coordination.