Fundamentals snapshot
FAF · NYQ · Financial Services · Insurance - Specialty
Current price
$71.78
52-week range
$56.20 - $79.87
Market cap
$7.33B
One-glance verdict
We don't put a cash-flow fair value on banks and insurers. For these companies the reported 'cash flow' is really just money moving between loans, deposits and trades — not the leftover profit the owners could actually pocket — so the usual method would print a misleading number.
Balance sheet
Net debt $61.10M. Interest coverage shows how many times profit covers the interest bill.
What stands out
What this company does
First American Financial is a major provider of title insurance, which is a policy that protects new property owners and their lenders from legal disputes over who truly owns a property. The company makes most of its money from fees collected during real estate sales and refinancings, so its performance is closely tied to the health of the housing market. They also offer home warranties that cover the cost of repairs for major household appliances and systems.
First American's story begins in 1889 as the Orange County Title Company, just as Orange County, California, was splitting from Los Angeles County. For many decades, it focused on the local real estate market, starting to offer title insurance in 1924. A major turning point came in 2010 when its parent company split into two, creating the modern First American Financial Corporation focused on title insurance and settlement services, and a separate data and analytics company called CoreLogic. This separation allowed First American to concentrate on its core business of supporting real estate transactions.
Think of First American as a company that makes buying and selling a home or commercial property safer and smoother. When you buy a property, they check its history to make sure the seller truly owns it and that there are no hidden claims or debts against it. They then issue title insurance (a policy that protects you and your mortgage lender from financial loss if a problem with the property's ownership history arises later). They also handle the closing process, which involves managing all the paperwork and money changing hands, a service known as escrow. Beyond this core service, they also offer home warranties to cover repairs for appliances and systems, and provide data and other services to the real estate industry.
This is the company's main business and where most of its revenue comes from. When a person or a business buys a property, this division researches public records to ensure the ownership is clear. It then sells an insurance policy to the buyer and their mortgage lender to protect them against any future claims on the property's title (the legal right of ownership). This segment also includes escrow services, where they act as a neutral third party to hold funds and documents until all conditions of a real estate sale are met. Customers range from individual homebuyers and sellers to large commercial property investors and homebuilders.
This part of the business sells service contracts, often to new homeowners, that cover the cost of repairing or replacing major home systems and appliances. Think of it like an insurance plan for your furnace, air conditioning, plumbing, or refrigerator if they break down from normal use. Homeowners pay a yearly fee for this protection, which can save them from unexpected, large repair bills. While much smaller than the title insurance business, it provides a steady stream of revenue for the company.
First American is heavily focused on using technology to make the complex process of buying a property faster and more efficient. They are investing in digital tools and platforms to streamline everything from title searches to the final closing process. The company is also leveraging its vast collection of property data to create new information products and services for others in the real estate industry. By making transactions smoother and monetizing their data, they aim to strengthen their leading position in the market.
Price history
Earnings history
Click any quarter to read the call summary and what the numbers say.
Is it cheap or expensive?
For a bank or insurer, the "free cash flow" shown on its statements is mostly money flowing through loans, deposits and trades — not the leftover profit the owners could actually keep, which is what this kind of valuation needs. Running that through the usual method would spit out a meaningless number, so we leave the cash-flow fair value out here rather than show you something misleading.
Is it drowning in debt?
Net debt $61.1M. Interest coverage 6.3x.
First American Financial Corporation's profit covers its interest bill about 6.3 times over. which is weaker than most peers shown here.
Total debt $2.79B Interest coverage 6.26x This is the baseline the peer rows are being compared against.
Total debt $4.78B Interest coverage 6.77x +8% vs FAF Has roughly the same debt cushion as FAF.
Total debt $2.28B Interest coverage 17.84x +185% vs FAF Carries about 2.8x more debt cushion than FAF.
Total debt $770.98M Interest coverage 9.10x +45% vs FAF Carries about 1.5x more debt cushion than FAF.
Total debt $745.23M Interest coverage 18.19x +191% vs FAF Carries about 2.9x more debt cushion than FAF.
Total debt $1.34B Interest coverage 12.67x +102% vs FAF Carries about 2.0x more debt cushion than FAF.
What you should know
The numbers
Tap any ? icon to learn what it means.
Valuation
Profitability
Health
Growth
Cash flow
Dividend
Metric explainer
Debt comparison
What you should know