Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) Trading Down 7% – Here’s Why

Stewart Information Services Corporation (NYSE:STC)’s share price fell 7% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $73.14 and last traded at $69.94. 20,239 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 89% from the average session volume of 179,675 shares. The stock had previously closed at $75.19.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on STC. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Stewart Information Services from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Stewart Information Services in a report on Friday. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Stewart Information Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, October 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $77.50.

Stewart Information Services Stock Up 3.4%

The firm has a market cap of $2.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.78 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a quick ratio of 1.91, a current ratio of 1.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $72.29 and a 200-day moving average of $66.96.

Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The insurance provider reported $1.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.42 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $791.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $737.30 million. Stewart Information Services had a return on equity of 8.57% and a net margin of 3.65%.Stewart Information Services’s revenue was up 19.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.07 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Stewart Information Services Corporation will post 6.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Stewart Information Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 16th were given a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. This is a boost from Stewart Information Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 16th. Stewart Information Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.52%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Stewart Information Services news, insider Brad Rable sold 5,694 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.32, for a total transaction of $371,932.08. Following the transaction, the insider owned 23,872 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,559,319.04. The trade was a 19.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Stewart Information Services

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Heritage Family Offices LLP grew its position in shares of Stewart Information Services by 4.5% in the third quarter. Heritage Family Offices LLP now owns 4,012 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $294,000 after purchasing an additional 173 shares during the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its position in shares of Stewart Information Services by 1.5% in the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 25,582 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,665,000 after purchasing an additional 368 shares during the last quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey grew its position in shares of Stewart Information Services by 6.4% in the second quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey now owns 6,211 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $404,000 after purchasing an additional 374 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Stewart Information Services by 13.4% in the first quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,533 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $252,000 after purchasing an additional 418 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Stewart Information Services by 138.3% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 741 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 430 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.90% of the company’s stock.

About Stewart Information Services

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.