Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) Announces Earnings Results

Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The insurance provider reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.21, Yahoo Finance reports. Stewart Information Services had a net margin of 1.85% and a return on equity of 5.16%. The firm had revenue of $667.94 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $638.40 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.86 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year.

Stewart Information Services Price Performance

Shares of Stewart Information Services stock traded down $2.40 during trading on Friday, reaching $69.03. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 119,202 shares, compared to its average volume of 188,767. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $72.02 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $67.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.97, a quick ratio of 1.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Stewart Information Services has a one year low of $38.40 and a one year high of $76.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.49 and a beta of 1.20.

Stewart Information Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th were issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.90%. This is a boost from Stewart Information Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. Stewart Information Services’s payout ratio is currently 131.58%.

Insider Activity at Stewart Information Services

In related news, CFO David C. Hisey sold 12,649 shares of Stewart Information Services stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.27, for a total value of $876,196.23. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 55,917 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,873,370.59. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on STC shares. BTIG Research lifted their price target on shares of Stewart Information Services from $68.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Stewart Information Services from $71.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. StockNews.com cut Stewart Information Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $79.00 price objective on shares of Stewart Information Services in a report on Thursday, July 25th.

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.