Fidelity National Financial, Inc. $FNF Shares Sold by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. cut its stake in Fidelity National Financial, Inc. (NYSE:FNF) by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 3,788,842 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 174,698 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Fidelity National Financial were worth $229,187,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quent Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fidelity National Financial during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Mather Group LLC. bought a new stake in shares of Fidelity National Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in Fidelity National Financial by 4,545.5% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 511 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Fidelity National Financial during the second quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fidelity National Financial during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.17% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Fidelity National Financial

In related news, Director Daniel D. Lane sold 6,367 shares of Fidelity National Financial stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.63, for a total transaction of $366,930.21. Following the sale, the director directly owned 276,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,923,630.04. This trade represents a 2.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Halim Dhanidina sold 6,000 shares of Fidelity National Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.90, for a total value of $335,400.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 13,186 shares in the company, valued at $737,097.40. The trade was a 31.27% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 5.50% of the company’s stock.

Fidelity National Financial Stock Down 0.2%

FNF stock opened at $54.37 on Monday. Fidelity National Financial, Inc. has a 1 year low of $50.61 and a 1 year high of $66.72. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $55.73 and a 200 day simple moving average of $57.19. The firm has a market cap of $15.29 billion, a PE ratio of 13.11, a PEG ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a current ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

Fidelity National Financial (NYSE:FNF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 10th. The financial services provider reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.20. Fidelity National Financial had a return on equity of 15.06% and a net margin of 8.34%.The business had revenue of $4.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.57 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.30 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Fidelity National Financial, Inc. will post 6.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fidelity National Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 17th were paid a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 17th. This is a boost from Fidelity National Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.8%. Fidelity National Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.12%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on FNF. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Fidelity National Financial from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Stephens initiated coverage on Fidelity National Financial in a research note on Friday, November 14th. They set an “overweight” rating for the company. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Fidelity National Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Barclays cut their target price on Fidelity National Financial from $64.00 to $63.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, National Bankshares set a $63.00 price target on shares of Fidelity National Financial in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $68.25.

Fidelity National Financial Company Profile

Fidelity National Financial (NYSE: FNF) is a leading provider of title insurance and transaction services to the real estate and mortgage industries. The company underwrites title insurance policies that protect property owners and lenders against title defects, liens, and other encumbrances. Alongside its core title insurance operations, FNF offers escrow and closing services, e-recording solutions, and real estate data and analytics through a network of agents and underwriters.

FNF operates through two primary segments: Title Insurance and Specialty Insurance and Services.