Fidelity National Financial (NYSE:FNF) Downgraded by Zacks Investment Research to Strong Sell

Fidelity National Financial (NYSE:FNF – Get Rating) was downgraded by Zacks Investment Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, Zacks.com reports.

According to Zacks, “Fidelity National Title Group, Inc. is a leading provider of title insurance, specialty insurance and claims management services. FNT is one of the nation’s largest title insurance companies through its title insurance underwriters. FNT also provides flood insurance, personal lines insurance and home warranty insurance through it specialty insurance business. FNT also is a leading provider of outsourced claims management services to large corporate and public sector entities through its minority-owned subsidiary, Sedgwick CMS. “

Several other brokerages have also recently weighed in on FNF. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Fidelity National Financial in a report on Thursday, March 31st. They set a “hold” rating for the company. BTIG Research assumed coverage on Fidelity National Financial in a research report on Wednesday, February 2nd. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Credit Suisse Group cut their price objective on Fidelity National Financial from $75.00 to $59.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 1st. Barclays lowered their target price on Fidelity National Financial from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 12th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Fidelity National Financial to $62.00 and gave the stock a “na” rating in a research note on Monday, May 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Fidelity National Financial has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $61.75.

Shares of NYSE:FNF traded up $0.02 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $42.32. The stock had a trading volume of 1,528,036 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,276,881. Fidelity National Financial has a fifty-two week low of $38.87 and a fifty-two week high of $56.44. The company has a quick ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 0.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $42.74 and a 200-day moving average price of $47.63. The stock has a market cap of $11.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.45 and a beta of 1.42.

Fidelity National Financial (NYSE:FNF – Get Rating) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 10th. The financial services provider reported $1.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $3.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.89 billion. Fidelity National Financial had a net margin of 14.10% and a return on equity of 24.56%. Fidelity National Financial’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.56 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Fidelity National Financial will post 6.05 EPS for the current year.

In related news, COO Roger S. Jewkes sold 7,438 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.01, for a total value of $371,974.38. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 104,246 shares in the company, valued at $5,213,342.46. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 5.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Concord Wealth Partners grew its stake in shares of Fidelity National Financial by 673.0% during the fourth quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 487 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 424 shares during the last quarter. Horan Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Fidelity National Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. IronBridge Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Fidelity National Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Bank of New Hampshire bought a new position in shares of Fidelity National Financial during the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Pflug Koory LLC bought a new stake in shares of Fidelity National Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 82.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Fidelity National Financial Company Profile (Get Rating)

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 insurance.

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