Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) Shares Gap Down – Should You Sell?

Stewart Information Services Corporation (NYSE:STC)’s share price gapped down before the market opened on Friday. The stock had previously closed at $61.98, but opened at $60.04. Stewart Information Services shares last traded at $59.2240, with a volume of 5,328 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on STC. Weiss Ratings cut Stewart Information Services from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday, September 18th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Stewart Information Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, July 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered Stewart Information Services from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $77.00 to $71.00 in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Zacks Research raised Stewart Information Services from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Benchmark assumed coverage on Stewart Information Services in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. They set a “buy” rating and a $87.00 price objective for the company. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $81.50.

Stewart Information Services Stock Down 0.0%

The company has a quick ratio of 1.98, a current ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The stock has a market cap of $1.82 billion, a PE ratio of 13.09 and a beta of 0.97. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $67.53 and a 200 day moving average of $66.45.

Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The insurance provider reported $1.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.63 by ($0.24). The business had revenue of $895.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $838.07 million. Stewart Information Services had a return on equity of 10.02% and a net margin of 4.12%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 24.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.34 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Stewart Information Services Corporation will post 5.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Stewart Information Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.55 per share. This is a boost from Stewart Information Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.5250. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.7%. Stewart Information Services’s dividend payout ratio is 48.25%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Brian Glaze sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.16, for a total value of $103,740.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 11,784 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $814,981.44. This represents a 11.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 2.94% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Stewart Information Services

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Caitlin John LLC acquired a new position in shares of Stewart Information Services in the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in Stewart Information Services during the 2nd quarter worth $42,000. Clearstead Advisors LLC lifted its position in Stewart Information Services by 50.9% in the fourth quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 981 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $69,000 after acquiring an additional 331 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new stake in Stewart Information Services in the second quarter valued at $67,000. Finally, Nykredit A S purchased a new position in shares of Stewart Information Services during the second quarter worth about $80,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.90% of the company’s stock.

About Stewart Information Services

Stewart Information Services Corporation is a title insurance and real estate services company headquartered in Houston, Texas. Through its Stewart Title operations, the company provides title insurance, escrow and closing services, and related services that help protect property buyers, lenders and other participants in real estate transactions from title defects and ownership-related risks.

The company also offers valuation and appraisal services, mortgage services, and technology-enabled solutions for the real estate and mortgage industries.