Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) Reaches New 1-Year High – Here’s Why

Stewart Information Services Co. (NYSE:STC) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $76.88 and last traded at $76.34, with a volume of 17874 shares. The stock had previously closed at $74.64.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Stewart Information Services from $71.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th.

Stewart Information Services Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $2.10 billion, a PE ratio of 35.59 and a beta of 1.21. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $71.49 and its 200-day moving average price is $68.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.94 and a quick ratio of 1.94.

Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The insurance provider reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $667.94 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $638.40 million. Stewart Information Services had a net margin of 2.47% and a return on equity of 5.77%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.86 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Stewart Information Services Co. will post 3.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Stewart Information Services Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is a boost from Stewart Information Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.65%. Stewart Information Services’s payout ratio is presently 94.34%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of STC. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of Stewart Information Services by 57.7% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 716 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 262 shares during the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Stewart Information Services in the third quarter valued at about $61,000. Kings Path Partners LLC acquired a new position in Stewart Information Services in the second quarter valued at about $65,000. nVerses Capital LLC acquired a new position in Stewart Information Services in the second quarter valued at about $74,000. Finally, Heritage Family Offices LLP acquired a new position in Stewart Information Services in the second quarter valued at about $204,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.90% of the company’s stock.

Stewart Information Services Company Profile

Stewart Information Services Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides title insurance and real estate transaction related services in the United States and internationally. The company involves in searching, examining, closing, and insuring the condition of the title to real property. It also offers home and personal insurance services; services for tax-deferred exchanges; and digital customer engagement platform services.