Financial Analysis: First American Financial (NYSE:FAF) versus Protector Forsikring ASA (OTCMKTS:PSKRF)

First American Financial (NYSE:FAF) and Protector Forsikring ASA (OTCMKTS:PSKRF) are both finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, institutional ownership, earnings, risk, analyst recommendations, valuation and dividends.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

89.1% of First American Financial shares are held by institutional investors. 3.7% of First American Financial shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares First American Financial and Protector Forsikring ASA’s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
First American Financial	$5.98 billion	0.94	$216.80 million	$2.09	25.94
Protector Forsikring ASA	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

First American Financial has higher revenue and earnings than Protector Forsikring ASA.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for First American Financial and Protector Forsikring ASA, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
First American Financial	0	2	4	0	2.67
Protector Forsikring ASA	0	0	0	0	N/A

First American Financial presently has a consensus price target of $67.75, suggesting a potential upside of 24.95%. Given First American Financial’s higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe First American Financial is more favorable than Protector Forsikring ASA.

Profitability

This table compares First American Financial and Protector Forsikring ASA’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
First American Financial	3.64%	8.20%	2.47%
Protector Forsikring ASA	N/A	N/A	N/A

Summary

First American Financial beats Protector Forsikring ASA on 8 of the 8 factors compared between the two stocks.

About First American Financial

First American Financial Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides financial services. It operates through Title Insurance and Services, and Home Warranty segments. The Title Insurance and Services segment issues title insurance policies on residential and commercial property, as well as offers related products and services internationally. This segment also provides closing and/or escrow services; products, services, and solutions to mitigate risk or otherwise facilitate real estate transactions; and appraisals and other valuation-related products and services, lien release and document custodial services, warehouse lending services, default-related products and services, document generation services, mortgage loans subservicing, and related products and services, as well as banking, trust, and wealth management services. In addition, it accommodates tax-deferred exchanges of real estate; and maintains, manages, and provides access to title plant data and records. This segment offers its products through a network of direct operations and agents in various states and in the District of Columbia, as well as in Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, South Korea, and internationally. The Home Warranty segment provides home warranty products, including residential service contracts that cover residential systems, such as heating and air conditioning systems, and various appliances against failures that occur as the result of normal usage during the coverage period. This segment operates in various states and the District of Columbia. The company was founded in 1889 and is headquartered in Santa Ana, California.

About Protector Forsikring ASA

Protector Forsikring ASA, operates as a non-life insurance company, provides various insurance products to the commercial and public sectors, and the grouped insurance schemes markets in Norway, Denmark, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and Finland. It operates in Commercial Lines of Business and Public Lines of Business segments. The company offers personal insurance, including personal and collective accident, critical illness, group life, health, and travel insurance; motor insurance; property insurance; and liability insurance. It sells its products through insurance brokers and agents. Protector Forsikring ASA was founded in 2003 and is headquartered in Oslo, Norway.