Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) Price Target Lowered to $74.00 at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) had its price target cut by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $84.00 to $74.00 in a research note published on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a market perform rating on the insurance provider’s stock.

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Stewart Information Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 24th.

Stewart Information Services Trading Down 3.0 %

NYSE STC opened at $62.36 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.42 and a beta of 1.24. Stewart Information Services has a 52 week low of $56.16 and a 52 week high of $78.44. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $71.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $70.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a current ratio of 1.94.

Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The insurance provider reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.96 by $0.21. Stewart Information Services had a net margin of 2.47% and a return on equity of 5.77%. The business had revenue of $667.94 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $638.40 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.86 EPS. Stewart Information Services’s revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Stewart Information Services will post 3.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Stewart Information Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. Stewart Information Services’s payout ratio is presently 94.34%.

Insider Transactions at Stewart Information Services

In other Stewart Information Services news, Director Matthew Morris sold 12,899 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.12, for a total value of $956,073.88. Following the sale, the director now owns 65,330 shares in the company, valued at $4,842,259.60. This trade represents a 16.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 1.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Arizona State Retirement System grew its holdings in Stewart Information Services by 2.2% during the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 7,688 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $477,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its holdings in Stewart Information Services by 1.4% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 13,538 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $840,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares during the period. Truist Financial Corp raised its position in shares of Stewart Information Services by 7.4% during the second quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 4,645 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $288,000 after acquiring an additional 319 shares during the last quarter. Trust Point Inc. raised its holdings in Stewart Information Services by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 13,918 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,040,000 after purchasing an additional 659 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Stewart Information Services by 5.7% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 14,888 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,113,000 after buying an additional 801 shares during the period. 96.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.