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

Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) had its price target trimmed by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $84.00 to $74.00 in a report issued on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has 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 report on Tuesday, December 24th.

Stewart Information Services Stock Performance

NYSE:STC opened at $59.92 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $71.46 and a 200-day moving average of $70.46. The firm has a market cap of $1.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.26 and a beta of 1.24. 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 twelve month low of $56.16 and a twelve month high of $78.44.

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

Stewart Information Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.34%. Stewart Information Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 94.34%.

Insider Activity

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 stock was sold at an average price of $74.12, for a total value of $956,073.88. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 65,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,842,259.60. The trade was a 16.49 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Stewart Information Services

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Natixis Advisors LLC grew its position in Stewart Information Services by 11.9% during the second quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 14,087 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $875,000 after buying an additional 1,498 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System raised its stake in shares of Stewart Information Services by 2.2% in the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 7,688 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $477,000 after buying an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Choreo LLC bought a new position in shares of Stewart Information Services during the 2nd quarter worth about $526,000. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp boosted its position in shares of Stewart Information Services by 19.3% during the 2nd quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 28,586 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,775,000 after acquiring an additional 4,632 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Stewart Information Services by 1.2% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 114,933 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $7,135,000 after purchasing an additional 1,336 shares in the last quarter. 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.