Hsbc Holdings PLC Increases Stake in Stewart Information Services Corporation $STC

Key Points

• Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its holdings in Stewart Information Services Corporation by 102.7% in the first quarter, owning a total of 9,659 shares valued at $687,000 after purchasing an additional 4,894 shares.
• Institutional investors collectively hold 96.90% of Stewart Information Services' stock, indicating significant institutional support and participation in the company's share structure.
• Stewart Information Services reported an earnings per share (EPS) of $1.34 for the latest quarter, surpassing analysts' estimates and marking a 19.9% increase in revenue year over year.

Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its position in Stewart Information Services Corporation (NYSE:STC - Free Report) by 102.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 9,659 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 4,894 shares during the quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC's holdings in Stewart Information Services were worth $687,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State of Wyoming grew its position in shares of Stewart Information Services by 84.0% during the 4th quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 1,461 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $99,000 after purchasing an additional 667 shares in the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC increased its stake in shares of Stewart Information Services by 7.5% in the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 2,982 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $201,000 after buying an additional 208 shares during the period. Montchanin Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Stewart Information Services in the fourth quarter valued at about $206,000. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. bought a new stake in shares of Stewart Information Services during the 1st quarter valued at about $218,000. Finally, Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Stewart Information Services during the 1st quarter valued at about $227,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.90% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Stewart Information Services

In other news, CFO David C. Hisey sold 2,224 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.39, for a total transaction of $143,203.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 58,359 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,757,736.01. The trade was a 3.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Brad Rable sold 5,694 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.32, for a total transaction of $371,932.08. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 23,872 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,559,319.04. The trade was a 19.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have issued reports on STC shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Stewart Information Services from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Stewart Information Services from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $77.50.

Stewart Information Services Trading Up 2.0%

Stewart Information Services stock traded up $1.44 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $73.68. 80,837 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 183,783. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $66.63 and its 200 day moving average price is $66.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 1.91 and a quick ratio of 1.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.69 and a beta of 0.94. Stewart Information Services Corporation has a 52-week low of $56.39 and a 52-week high of $78.44.

Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The insurance provider reported $1.34 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.30 by $0.04. Stewart Information Services had a net margin of 3.29% and a return on equity of 7.71%. The business had revenue of $721.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $671.90 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.91 earnings per share. Stewart Information Services's quarterly revenue was up 19.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Stewart Information Services Corporation will post 6.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Stewart Information Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.525 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 16th. This is an increase from Stewart Information Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. Stewart Information Services's payout ratio is presently 64.31%.

Stewart Information Services 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.