Stephens Reiterates “Overweight” Rating for Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC)

Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC)‘s stock had its “overweight” rating reaffirmed by analysts at Stephens in a research note issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $82.00 price target on the insurance provider’s stock. Stephens’ price target indicates a potential upside of 21.94% from the company’s current price.

Several other brokerages also recently weighed in on STC. StockNews.com downgraded Stewart Information Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on Stewart Information Services from $84.00 to $74.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th.

Stewart Information Services Price Performance

STC opened at $67.25 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.72 and a beta of 1.23. Stewart Information Services has a 12-month low of $56.16 and a 12-month high of $78.44. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $68.27 and a 200-day moving average price of $70.44. The company has a current ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The insurance provider reported $1.12 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.01. Stewart Information Services had a return on equity of 5.77% and a net margin of 2.47%. Equities analysts predict that Stewart Information Services will post 3.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Matthew Morris sold 12,899 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.12, for a total value of $956,073.88. Following the transaction, the director now owns 65,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,842,259.60. This trade represents a 16.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 2.99% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Stewart Information Services

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Stewart Information Services by 310.9% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 452 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 342 shares during the last quarter. Versor Investments LP purchased a new position in Stewart Information Services during the 4th quarter valued at $405,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Stewart Information Services during the 4th quarter valued at about $749,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in Stewart Information Services by 10.9% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 299,375 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $20,205,000 after purchasing an additional 29,496 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Navellier & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in Stewart Information Services during the 4th quarter valued at $925,000. 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.