Short Interest in Investors Title (NASDAQ:ITIC) Rises By 41.4%

Investors Title (NASDAQ:ITIC) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 26,300 shares, a growth of 41.4% from the October 15th total of 18,600 shares. Currently, 1.9% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 14,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.9 days.

Investors Title Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ITIC traded down $3.18 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $271.60. The stock had a trading volume of 10,867 shares, compared to its average volume of 10,692. The company has a 50 day moving average of $235.29 and a two-hundred day moving average of $204.10. Investors Title has a twelve month low of $141.41 and a twelve month high of $283.27. The firm has a market cap of $511.69 million, a PE ratio of 17.97 and a beta of 0.85.

Investors Title Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a $14.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $57.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 21.30%. This is a positive change from Investors Title’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Investors Title’s dividend payout ratio is currently 12.18%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Investors Title

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its holdings in shares of Investors Title by 36.1% during the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 637 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $104,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in shares of Investors Title by 4.2% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 4,302 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $702,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Investors Title by 0.9% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 67,743 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $11,055,000 after purchasing an additional 591 shares in the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Investors Title by 41.1% in the 1st quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 3,560 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $581,000 after purchasing an additional 1,037 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aristides Capital LLC purchased a new position in Investors Title in the 1st quarter valued at $1,648,000. 41.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Investors Title from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday.

Investors Title Company Profile

Investors Title Company engages in the issuance of residential and commercial title insurance for residential, institutional, commercial, and industrial properties. The company underwrites land title insurance for owners and mortgagees as a primary insurer; and assumes the reinsurance of title insurance risks from other title insurance companies.