Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) Stock Price Crosses Above 200-Day Moving Average - What's Next?

Stewart Information Services Corporation (NYSE:STC - Get Free Report)'s stock price crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Wednesday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $66.83 and traded as high as $74.68. Stewart Information Services shares last traded at $74.16, with a volume of 87,590 shares traded.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Stewart Information Services Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 1.91 and a quick ratio of 1.91. The company has a market cap of $2.08 billion, a PE ratio of 23.84 and a beta of 0.94. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $69.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $66.83.

Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The insurance provider reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $721.50 million for 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%.The business's revenue was up 19.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.91 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Stewart Information Services Corporation will post 6.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Stewart Information Services Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 16th will be issued 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 presently 67.52%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Brad Rable sold 5,694 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.32, for a total value of $371,932.08. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 23,872 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,559,319.04. This trade represents a 19.26% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, 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 transaction, the chief financial officer owned 58,359 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,757,736.01. This trade represents 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.

Institutional Trading of Stewart Information Services

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in STC. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its stake in Stewart Information Services by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,715,422 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $113,286,000 after buying an additional 33,413 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in Stewart Information Services by 5.0% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 996,558 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $71,104,000 after buying an additional 47,384 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings 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 worth $70,648,000 after acquiring an additional 155,210 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Stewart Information Services by 1.6% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 657,573 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $42,813,000 after acquiring an additional 10,236 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DAVENPORT & Co LLC increased its holdings in shares of Stewart Information Services by 1.2% during the second quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 517,454 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $33,764,000 after acquiring an additional 5,921 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.90% of the company's stock.

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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