The Globe and Mail reports in its Thursday, Aug. 3, edition that Scotia Capital analyst Phil Hardie has reaffirmed his "sector perform" recommendation for First National Financial. The Globe's David Leeder writes that Mr. Hardie gave his share target a $3 boost to $43. Analysts on average target the shares at $40.83. Mr. Hardie says in a note: "First National's second quarter results likely provided another data point demonstrating its business model's strength. Underlying core earnings and key performance indicators, including mortgage origination volumes and Mortgages Under Administration (MUA), came in well ahead of expectations. Despite intense competition and reduced mortgage volumes due to the impact of rising mortgage rates, the company managed to increase its mortgages under administration (MUA) by upper single digits on a year-over-year basis and at a mid-teen run rate. Challenging market conditions are likely to persist through the remainder of the year with softer mortgage volumes, however we expect core earnings to rise year-over-year." The Globe reported on July 29 that Mr. Hardie was maintaining his "sector perform" call on First National when its shares could be had for $37.14.