Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report report published on Wednesday morning.

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Stewart Information Services from $79.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday.

Stewart Information Services Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE STC opened at $74.60 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.07 billion, a PE ratio of 35.19 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Stewart Information Services has a 1 year low of $55.30 and a 1 year high of $78.44. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $71.85 and its 200-day moving average is $69.68.

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. The company had revenue of $667.94 million for 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.86 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Stewart Information Services will post 3.32 EPS for the current year.

Stewart Information Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 30th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. Stewart Information Services’s payout ratio is 94.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Stewart Information Services news, Director Matthew Morris sold 12,899 shares of Stewart Information Services 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 transaction, the director now owns 65,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,842,259.60. The trade was a 16.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 1.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in Stewart Information Services by 57.7% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 716 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 262 shares in the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Stewart Information Services in the third quarter valued at approximately $61,000. Kings Path Partners LLC bought a new position in Stewart Information Services in the second quarter valued at approximately $65,000. nVerses Capital LLC bought a new position in Stewart Information Services in the second quarter valued at approximately $74,000. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc bought a new position in Stewart Information Services in the third quarter valued at approximately $205,000. 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.