StockNews.com Downgrades Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) to Hold

StockNews.com lowered shares of Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Friday.

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced 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 report on Wednesday, January 8th.

Stewart Information Services Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:STC opened at $65.24 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.81 billion, a PE ratio of 30.77 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 12-month low of $56.16 and a 12-month high of $78.44. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $68.91 and its 200-day simple moving average is $70.56.

Stewart Information Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th were given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.07%. Stewart Information Services’s payout ratio is 94.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Matthew Morris sold 12,899 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 65,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,842,259.60. This trade represents a 16.49 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in shares of Stewart Information Services by 149.0% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 342,090 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $25,568,000 after purchasing an additional 204,688 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Stewart Information Services by 16.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,247,762 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $93,258,000 after acquiring an additional 179,364 shares during the last quarter. Emerald Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Stewart Information Services in the third quarter worth $5,330,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of 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 worth $73,669,000 after purchasing an additional 65,965 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust acquired a new position in Stewart Information Services during the third quarter valued at $3,770,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.