Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) Raised to “Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report published on Friday morning.

STC has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of Stewart Information Services from $57.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a market perform rating in a report on Thursday, March 21st. BTIG Research lifted their target price on shares of Stewart Information Services from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Monday, April 29th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an overweight rating and set a $79.00 target price on shares of Stewart Information Services in a report on Thursday, April 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $69.33.

Stewart Information Services Stock Performance

NYSE:STC opened at $62.41 on Friday. Stewart Information Services has a 1 year low of $38.40 and a 1 year high of $66.66. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $62.61 and a 200-day moving average of $61.16. The company has a current ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.06 and a beta of 1.18.

Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The insurance provider reported $0.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Stewart Information Services had a net margin of 1.83% and a return on equity of 4.69%. The company had revenue of $554.32 million during the quarter. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Stewart Information Services will post 4.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Stewart Information Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 17th will be issued a $0.475 dividend. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.04%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 17th. Stewart Information Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 125.00%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Stewart Information Services

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new position in shares of Stewart Information Services in the 4th quarter valued at $805,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Stewart Information Services by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,922,748 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $112,963,000 after acquiring an additional 59,639 shares in the last quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Stewart Information Services in the 1st quarter valued at $4,917,000. Natixis Advisors L.P. lifted its position in Stewart Information Services by 5.9% in the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 10,766 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $472,000 after acquiring an additional 601 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd bought a new stake in Stewart Information Services in the 4th quarter valued at $422,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.