BNP Paribas Financial Markets Sells 5,345 Shares of Stewart Information Services Co. (NYSE:STC)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets cut its stake in Stewart Information Services Co. (NYSE:STC - Free Report) by 50.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,218 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 5,345 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets' holdings in Stewart Information Services were worth $352,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new position in Stewart Information Services during the fourth quarter worth about $385,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Stewart Information Services by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 134,391 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $9,070,000 after acquiring an additional 3,938 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Stewart Information Services during the fourth quarter worth about $749,000. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in Stewart Information Services by 205.6% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 13,492 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $911,000 after acquiring an additional 9,077 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its stake in Stewart Information Services by 337.0% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 45,500 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $3,400,000 after buying an additional 35,088 shares in the last quarter. 96.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Stewart Information Services Price Performance

Shares of STC traded up $0.21 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $60.39. The company had a trading volume of 296,418 shares, compared to its average volume of 170,651. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $65.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $68.02. Stewart Information Services Co. has a 1-year low of $58.61 and a 1-year high of $78.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a current ratio of 1.86. The company has a market capitalization of $1.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.23 and a beta of 1.01.

Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The insurance provider reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.34 by ($0.09). Stewart Information Services had a return on equity of 6.81% and a net margin of 2.94%. The business had revenue of $608.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $595.50 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.17 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect 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 was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.31%. Stewart Information Services's dividend payout ratio is presently 76.92%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Stewart Information Services news, Director C Allen Bradley, Jr. bought 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 28th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $59.63 per share, for a total transaction of $59,630.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 20,243 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,207,090.09. This represents a 5.20% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on STC. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Stewart Information Services from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. 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. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised 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 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.