First American Corporation

First American Financial, which traces its roots to 1889, sells title insurance. Title is the legal right to own a property. A title policy protects an owner or mortgage lender if a hidden problem that existed before the policy was issued surfaces later, such as an unpaid debt secured on the property or a rival ownership claim. The company also handles closings and escrow, where documents are signed and money changes hands.

The premium is typically paid once, in full, at closing, and is based on the policy amount. First American sells policies through its own offices and through independent agents, who keep part of the premium. Because title insurers search public records and fix problems before issuing a policy, claims are relatively low compared with premiums, but search, staff and technology costs are high.

Title insurance and related services made up 93.6% of the company's $7.45 billion of revenue in 2025. This segment writes policies in the 49 states that permit title insurance, plus Washington, DC, and operates in Canada, the UK, parts of Europe, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand. It also offers banking, trust and wealth management. A smaller home warranty segment sells plans that cover repairs to home systems and appliances. Most of the business rises and falls with real estate and mortgage activity.

• In Q3 FY2026 (ended Sep 30, 2026), revenue was $2.08B, up 5.3% from a year earlier, and net income was $177.0M (-6.6%).
• For fiscal 2025, revenue was $7.45B (+21.6% year over year; +1.0% a year from FY2020 to FY2025) with a 8.3% net margin.

• Over FY2021–FY2025: $803.4M in buybacks and $1.09B in dividends.
• At least 9 consecutive annual increases: every fiscal year in the SEC data (FY2016–FY2025) shows an increase; the true streak may be longer.
• Regular dividends per share grew +4.1% a year over 5 years (FY2020–FY2025).
• Dividends took 35.9% of earnings and 29.2% of free cash flow in the latest fiscal year.
• Shares outstanding changed -6.6% from Feb 10, 2022 to Oct 19, 2026.

Rank among 1514 US companies

Market value at each year end

First American’s market value went from $4.02B at the end of 2016 to $6.49B on Oct 28, 2026, up 61%; since the end of 2025 it is up 4%.

Form 4 filings from 2025-10-29 to 2026-10-29 (25 read): 0 open-market purchases and 4 sales ($1.1M).

Large shareholders (13G filings)

ETFs with the most weight in FAF

1. Housing and mortgage slowdowns hit revenue. Most of the business depends on real estate deals and mortgage refinancing. Home sales and refinancing tend to slow when mortgage rates rise. Revenue fell from $9.2 billion in 2021 to $6.0 billion in 2023.
2. Claims could exceed money set aside. The company sets aside money for claims that have occurred but not yet been reported. Title problems can surface long after a policy is issued, so actual claims could come in higher than estimated.
3. Independent agents act on its behalf. Independent agents issue policies for First American and usually for other insurers too. The company must still pay valid claims on those policies, though it can sometimes recover losses from the agent.
4. Payment fraud and cyberattacks. First American moves closing funds and holds sensitive customer data. A hack, system outage or fraudulent payment could cause direct losses, damage claims and harm to its reputation.
5. Automation and AI could backfire. The company is automating title searches, underwriting and parts of closings, partly with artificial intelligence. Flawed technology, poor data or wrong assumptions could raise claims. Innovation by others in real estate could also shift demand.
6. Regulated prices and government scrutiny. Title insurance prices are regulated in most places, and government bodies scrutinize the industry. Rate limits, new rules or investigations could reduce First American's earnings or raise its costs.

• Oct 21, 2026 Quarterly results released
• Jul 22, 2026 Quarterly results released
• May 15, 2026 Change to shareholder rights; Bylaws or fiscal year changed; Shareholder vote results
• Apr 29, 2026 Executive or board change
• Apr 22, 2026 Quarterly results released
• Feb 11, 2026 Quarterly results released
• Jan 21, 2026 Executive or board change
• Nov 4, 2025 Executive or board change

First American has raised its dividend at least nine years in a row through 2025. It rose from $1.78 a share in 2020 to $2.18 in 2025, about 4.1% a year. In 2025 the company paid out about 36% of earnings and 29% of free cash flow (cash left after running and investing in the business). But in weak years earnings per share fell below the dividend: $2.07 in 2023 and $1.26 in 2024. The yield was 3.56% as of October 28, 2026. Buybacks of about $803 million from 2021 to 2025 helped cut the share count 6.6% between February 2022 and October 2026.

Past downturns hit the shares hard. In the 2020 COVID crash they fell about 50% and took about 13 months to recover. In the 2022 bear market they fell about 43% and did not regain their high until February 2026, roughly 41 months later. A single stock carries more risk than a diversified fund.