Stewart Information Services Co. (NYSE:STC) Short Interest Up 50.9% in March

Stewart Information Services Co. (NYSE:STC) was the target of a large increase in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 965,400 shares, an increase of 50.9% from the February 28th total of 639,900 shares. Currently, 3.5% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 198,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.9 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on STC shares. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $82.00 price target on shares of Stewart Information Services in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Stewart Information Services from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Stewart Information Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Stewart Information Services

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Stewart Information Services by 310.9% during the 4th 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. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Stewart Information Services by 807.4% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 853 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 759 shares during the last quarter. State of Wyoming boosted its position in Stewart Information Services by 84.0% in the fourth quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 1,461 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $99,000 after purchasing an additional 667 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV grew its stake in Stewart Information Services by 58.7% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,546 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $104,000 after purchasing an additional 572 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of Stewart Information Services by 9.3% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,434 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $182,000 after purchasing an additional 208 shares during the last quarter. 96.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Stewart Information Services Trading Down 1.3 %

STC stock traded down $0.92 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $71.68. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 119,615 shares, compared to its average volume of 172,864. The company has a market cap of $1.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.57 and a beta of 1.19. Stewart Information Services has a 12 month low of $58.23 and a 12 month high of $78.44. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $68.53 and its 200 day moving average price is $70.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.86, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The insurance provider reported $1.12 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.01. Stewart Information Services had a net margin of 2.94% and a return on equity of 6.81%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Stewart Information Services will post 6.29 EPS for the current year.

Stewart Information Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.79%. Stewart Information Services’s dividend payout ratio is 76.92%.

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.