Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) Hits New 12-Month High at $65.35

Stewart Information Services Co. (NYSE:STC) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $65.35 and last traded at $64.93, with a volume of 309452 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $62.79.

Analyst Ratings Changes

STC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. BTIG Research upgraded Stewart Information Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $70.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, December 4th. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $76.00 price objective on shares of Stewart Information Services in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Stewart Information Services from $57.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $68.33.

Stewart Information Services Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 2.11 and a current ratio of 2.11. The company has a market cap of $1.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.11 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a fifty day moving average of $61.42 and a two-hundred day moving average of $53.10.

Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The insurance provider reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $582.17 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $566.46 million. Stewart Information Services had a net margin of 1.35% and a return on equity of 3.85%. The firm’s revenue was down 11.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.60 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Stewart Information Services Co. will post 4.5 EPS for the current year.

Stewart Information Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th will be issued a $0.475 dividend. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 14th. Stewart Information Services’s payout ratio is 171.17%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Stewart Information Services news, Director Matthew Morris sold 12,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.11, for a total value of $757,320.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 76,867 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,851,076.37. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Stewart Information Services

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in STC. Advisory Services Network LLC increased its position in shares of Stewart Information Services by 74.9% in the first quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 698 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Stewart Information Services in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $115,000. Federated Hermes Inc. raised its position in shares of Stewart Information Services by 60.3% in the 1st quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 2,255 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $137,000 after purchasing an additional 848 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its stake in shares of Stewart Information Services by 92.8% in the first quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 2,960 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $179,000 after buying an additional 1,425 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Stewart Information Services in the second quarter worth $179,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.