Stewart Information Services Corporation (NYSE:STC) Short Interest Up 35.6% in August

Key Points

• Short interest for Stewart Information Services increased by 35.6% in August, reaching a total of 642,700 shares, indicating growing bearish sentiment among investors.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend increase to $0.525 per share, representing a boost from the previous $0.50 dividend and yielding 2.8% annually.
• Stewart Information Services reported quarterly earnings of $1.34 per share, exceeding analysts' expectations and showing a 19.9% year-over-year revenue growth.

Stewart Information Services Corporation (NYSE:STC - Get Free Report) saw a large increase in short interest in the month of August. As of August 15th, there was short interest totaling 642,700 shares, anincreaseof35.6% from the July 31st total of 473,900 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 200,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.2 days. Based on an average trading volume of 200,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.2 days.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO David C. Hisey sold 2,224 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 25th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $3,757,736.01. The trade was a 3.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Brad Rable sold 5,694 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 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. Insiders own 2.78% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Stewart Information Services

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vident Advisory LLC increased its stake 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 worth $201,000 after purchasing an additional 208 shares during the period. Heritage Family Offices LLP increased its stake in shares of Stewart Information Services by 8.8% during the first quarter. Heritage Family Offices LLP now owns 3,840 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $274,000 after buying an additional 310 shares during the period. California State Teachers Retirement System increased its stake in shares of Stewart Information Services by 1.5% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 25,582 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,665,000 after buying an additional 368 shares during the period. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey increased its stake in shares of Stewart Information Services by 6.4% during the second quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey now owns 6,211 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $404,000 after buying an additional 374 shares during the period. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Stewart Information Services by 13.4% during the first quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,533 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $252,000 after buying an additional 418 shares during the period. 96.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Stewart Information Services Trading Up 2.1%

STC traded up $1.56 during trading on Monday, reaching $75.11. The company had a trading volume of 196,293 shares, compared to its average volume of 133,567. The stock has a market cap of $2.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.15 and a beta of 0.94. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $67.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $66.43. Stewart Information Services has a 52 week low of $56.39 and a 52 week high of $78.44. The company has a quick ratio of 1.91, a current ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

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. The company had revenue of $721.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.91 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Stewart Information Services will post 6.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Stewart Information Services Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 16th will be given a $0.525 dividend. This is a boost from Stewart Information Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 16th. Stewart Information Services's dividend payout ratio is 64.31%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

STC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Stewart Information Services from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Stewart Information Services from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $77.50.

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.

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