Nuveen LLC Buys Shares of 177,965 Stewart Information Services Corporation $STC

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC has acquired 177,965 shares of Stewart Information Services Corporation, valued at approximately $12.7 million, representing 0.64% of the company's stock.
• The company's latest earnings report showed an EPS of $1.34, exceeding analyst estimates, with revenues increasing by 19.9% year-over-year.
• Stewart Information Services announced a quarterly dividend of $0.50, leading to an annualized dividend yield of 2.8%.

Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Stewart Information Services Corporation (NYSE:STC - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 177,965 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $12,698,000. Nuveen LLC owned approximately 0.64% of Stewart Information Services as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in STC. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Stewart Information Services by 807.4% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 853 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 759 shares in the last quarter. State of Wyoming boosted its holdings in Stewart Information Services by 84.0% in the fourth quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 1,461 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $99,000 after purchasing an additional 667 shares in the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 208 shares in the last quarter. Montchanin Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Stewart Information Services in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $206,000. Finally, First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. acquired a new position in Stewart Information Services in the first quarter valued at approximately $218,000. 96.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on STC. Wall Street Zen raised Stewart Information Services from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Stewart Information Services from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $77.50.

Stewart Information Services Stock Performance

Shares of Stewart Information Services stock traded up $0.52 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $73.16. 123,957 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 162,403. 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 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The business has a 50-day moving average of $65.81 and a 200-day moving average of $66.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.52 and a beta of 0.91.

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

Stewart Information Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th were given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 16th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. Stewart Information Services's dividend payout ratio is presently 64.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Stewart Information Services

In other Stewart Information Services news, insider Brad Rable sold 5,694 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.32, for a total value of $371,932.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 23,872 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,559,319.04. This represents a 19.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO David C. Hisey sold 2,224 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.39, for a total value of $143,203.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 58,359 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,757,736.01. The trade was a 3.67% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

About Stewart Information Services

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.