Proficio Capital Partners LLC Acquires New Position in Stewart Information Services Co. (NYSE:STC)

Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Stewart Information Services Co. (NYSE:STC) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm bought 11,098 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $749,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Stewart Information Services by 310.9% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 452 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 342 shares during the period. KBC Group NV boosted its stake in shares of Stewart Information Services by 58.7% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,546 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $104,000 after buying an additional 572 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of Stewart Information Services by 9.3% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,434 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $182,000 after buying an additional 208 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Stewart Information Services during the third quarter worth approximately $205,000. Finally, Atria Investments Inc purchased a new position in Stewart Information Services in the third quarter worth approximately $207,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.90% of the company’s stock.

Stewart Information Services Stock Performance

Shares of STC opened at $70.27 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $67.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $70.06. The firm has a market cap of $1.95 billion, a PE ratio of 27.03 and a beta of 1.19. Stewart Information Services Co. has a 12-month low of $58.23 and a 12-month high of $78.44. The company has a current ratio of 1.86, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The insurance provider reported $1.12 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.01. Stewart Information Services had a return on equity of 6.81% and a net margin of 2.94%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Stewart Information Services Co. will post 6.29 EPS for the current year.

Stewart Information Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.85%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Stewart Information Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 76.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

STC has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $82.00 price target on shares of Stewart Information Services in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com upgraded Stewart Information Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Stewart Information Services from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th.

Stewart Information Services Profile

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.