Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) Stock Gets Price Target Reduction from Citizens Jmp

Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) had its price target trimmed by Citizens Jmp from $80.00 to $75.00 in a research report sent to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a market outperform rating on the insurance provider’s stock.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded Stewart Information Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 25th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Stewart Information Services from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Friday, October 2nd. Citigroup reiterated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Stewart Information Services in a report on Monday. Benchmark began coverage on shares of Stewart Information Services in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. They set a “buy” rating and a $87.00 price target for the company. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered shares of Stewart Information Services from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $77.00 to $71.00 in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $80.25.

Stewart Information Services Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of NYSE STC opened at $50.80 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.98, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.55 billion, a PE ratio of 9.33 and a beta of 1.04. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $62.97 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $65.50. Stewart Information Services has a 12-month low of $48.74 and a 12-month high of $78.61.

Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The insurance provider reported $1.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.63 by ($0.24). The company had revenue of $895.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $838.07 million. Stewart Information Services had a net margin of 4.12% and a return on equity of 10.02%. The company’s revenue was up 24.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.34 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Stewart Information Services will post 5.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Stewart Information Services Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th were issued a $0.55 dividend. This is an increase from Stewart Information Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.5250. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 15th. Stewart Information Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.25%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Brian Glaze sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.16, for a total transaction of $103,740.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 11,784 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $814,981.44. This represents a 11.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.94% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Stewart Information Services

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Caitlin John LLC acquired a new position in shares of Stewart Information Services in the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC purchased a new position in Stewart Information Services in the 2nd quarter worth $42,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in Stewart Information Services by 93.6% in the 3rd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,152 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 557 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new position in Stewart Information Services in the 2nd quarter worth $67,000. Finally, Nykredit A S acquired a new stake in Stewart Information Services during the 2nd quarter worth about $80,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.90% of the company’s stock.

Stewart Information Services Company Profile

Stewart Information Services Corporation is a global real estate services company headquartered in Houston, Texas. Through its Stewart Title operations, the company provides title insurance and related services that help protect property owners, lenders and other parties involved in real estate transactions from certain title defects and ownership-related risks.

The company’s business includes title examination, search and insurance services, escrow and closing services, settlement services, and related transaction support.