Meeder Asset Management Inc. Increases Stock Position in Stewart Information Services Corporation (NYSE:STC)

Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Stewart Information Services Corporation (NYSE:STC - Free Report) by 125.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 12,559 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 6,980 shares during the quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Stewart Information Services were worth $896,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its stake in Stewart Information Services by 3.1% in the first quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 36,481 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $2,603,000 after purchasing an additional 1,107 shares during the period. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC acquired a new position in Stewart Information Services in the first quarter valued at $227,000. Cooke & Bieler LP increased its stake in Stewart Information Services by 5.8% in the first quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 449,672 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $32,084,000 after purchasing an additional 24,840 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Stewart Information Services by 18.6% in the first quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 990,168 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $70,648,000 after purchasing an additional 155,210 shares during the period. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Stewart Information Services by 13.4% in the first quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,533 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $252,000 after purchasing an additional 418 shares during the period. 96.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Stewart Information Services Stock Performance

Shares of Stewart Information Services stock traded up $0.68 on Friday, reaching $65.61. 280,012 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 190,954. Stewart Information Services Corporation has a 1-year low of $56.39 and a 1-year high of $78.44. The company has a current ratio of 1.91, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $62.43 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $65.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.83 billion, a PE ratio of 21.09 and a beta of 0.99.

Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The insurance provider reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 period in the previous year, the business posted $0.91 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 19.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Stewart Information Services Corporation will post 6.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Stewart Information Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 16th. Stewart Information Services's dividend payout ratio is presently 64.31%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Stewart Information Services news, CFO David C. Hisey sold 2,224 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.39, for a total transaction of $143,203.36. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 58,359 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,757,736.01. This represents a 3.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director C Allen Bradley, Jr. bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 28th. The shares were bought at an average price of $59.63 per share, for a total transaction of $59,630.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 20,243 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,207,090.09. This trade represents a 5.20% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

STC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Stewart Information Services from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Stewart Information Services from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday.

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.