Stewart Information Services Co. (NYSE:STC) Short Interest Update

Stewart Information Services Co. (NYSE:STC) was the target of a significant drop in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 646,500 shares, a drop of 15.2% from the December 15th total of 762,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 157,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.1 days.

Stewart Information Services Stock Up 3.5 %

Shares of Stewart Information Services stock traded up $2.20 on Thursday, hitting $64.70. 207,060 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 262,116. Stewart Information Services has a 52-week low of $56.16 and a 52-week high of $78.44. The company has a quick ratio of 1.94, a current ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock has a market cap of $1.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.52 and a beta of 1.24. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $70.68 and its 200 day moving average is $70.47.

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

Stewart Information Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.09%. Stewart Information Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 94.34%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

STC has been the subject of several analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of Stewart Information Services from $84.00 to $74.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. StockNews.com raised shares of Stewart Information Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 24th.

Insider Activity

In other Stewart Information Services news, Director Matthew Morris sold 12,899 shares of the company’s 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 completion of the transaction, the director now owns 65,330 shares in the company, valued at $4,842,259.60. This represents a 16.49 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 2.99% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Stewart Information Services

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Stewart Information Services by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,488,342 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $185,979,000 after acquiring an additional 8,853 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in Stewart Information Services by 0.7% in the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,641,717 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $122,702,000 after purchasing an additional 10,811 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Stewart Information Services by 16.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,247,762 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $93,258,000 after purchasing an additional 179,364 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Stewart Information Services by 7.2% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 985,673 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $73,669,000 after purchasing an additional 65,965 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Stewart Information Services by 906.9% during the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 656,143 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $40,733,000 after purchasing an additional 590,977 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.90% of the company’s stock.

Stewart Information Services Company 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.