Northern Trust Corp Trims Stock Holdings in Stewart Information Services Co. (NYSE:STC)

Northern Trust Corp trimmed its stake in Stewart Information Services Co. (NYSE:STC - Free Report) by 22.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 331,431 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 94,661 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp owned about 1.20% of Stewart Information Services worth $22,368,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its holdings in Stewart Information Services by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 29,717 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $2,006,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares during the period. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Stewart Information Services by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 2,831 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $191,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the period. Pitcairn Co. increased its holdings in Stewart Information Services by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Pitcairn Co. now owns 6,850 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $462,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in Stewart Information Services by 9.3% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,434 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $182,000 after purchasing an additional 208 shares during the period. Finally, Heritage Family Offices LLP increased its holdings in Stewart Information Services by 9.2% in the fourth quarter. Heritage Family Offices LLP now owns 3,530 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $238,000 after purchasing an additional 296 shares during the period. 96.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Stewart Information Services Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of STC stock traded up $0.22 on Friday, reaching $66.26. 138,380 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 168,255. Stewart Information Services Co. has a one year low of $58.61 and a one year high of $78.44. The company has a 50-day moving average of $67.40 and a 200-day moving average of $68.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.86 and a quick ratio of 1.94. The company has a market cap of $1.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.48 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 firm had revenue of $608.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $595.50 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.17 EPS. Stewart Information Services's quarterly revenue was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Stewart Information Services Co. will post 6.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Stewart Information Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders 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 dividend yield of 3.02%. Stewart Information Services's dividend payout ratio is currently 76.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on STC. StockNews.com downgraded Stewart Information Services from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Stewart Information Services from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $82.00 price target on shares of Stewart Information Services in a report on Thursday, February 6th.

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.