Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Lowers Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) Price Target to $72.00

Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC - Free Report) had its price objective lowered by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $75.00 to $72.00 in a report published on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a market perform rating on the insurance provider's stock.

Separately, Wall Street Zen cut Stewart Information Services from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th.

Stewart Information Services Price Performance

NYSE:STC traded up $0.22 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $60.52. 320,267 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 172,598. The company has a market capitalization of $1.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.28 and a beta of 0.99. Stewart Information Services 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 current ratio of 1.77 and a quick ratio of 1.77. The business has a 50 day moving average of $63.42 and a 200 day moving average of $65.97.

Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The insurance provider reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.34 by ($0.09). Stewart Information Services had a net margin of 2.88% and a return on equity of 6.92%. The business had revenue of $608.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $595.50 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.17 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Stewart Information Services will post 6.29 EPS for the current year.

Stewart Information Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th were given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.30%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 16th. Stewart Information Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 76.92%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Stewart Information Services

In other news, Director C Allen Bradley, Jr. bought 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 28th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $59.63 per share, with a total value of $59,630.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 20,243 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,207,090.09. This represents a 5.20% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Stewart Information Services

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in STC. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in Stewart Information Services by 310.9% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 452 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 342 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Stewart Information Services by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 542,367 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $36,604,000 after buying an additional 5,748 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Stewart Information Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $749,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Stewart Information Services during the 4th quarter valued at about $4,034,000. Finally, Amundi boosted its stake in Stewart Information Services by 186.9% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 13,980 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $872,000 after purchasing an additional 9,107 shares during the last quarter. 96.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.