Empowered Funds LLC Buys 4,288 Shares of Stewart Information Services Co. (NYSE:STC)

Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in Stewart Information Services Co. (NYSE:STC) by 5.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 85,302 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,288 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC owned approximately 0.31% of Stewart Information Services worth $6,375,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Stewart Information Services by 57.7% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 716 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 262 shares during the period. Copeland Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Stewart Information Services in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $61,000. Kings Path Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Stewart Information Services during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $65,000. nVerses Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Stewart Information Services during the second quarter valued at approximately $74,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Stewart Information Services in the first quarter valued at $111,000. 96.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

STC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $79.00 price target on shares of Stewart Information Services in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. BTIG Research upped their target price on shares of Stewart Information Services from $68.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Stewart Information Services from $71.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th.

Stewart Information Services Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE STC opened at $73.40 on Friday. Stewart Information Services Co. has a 52-week low of $45.12 and a 52-week high of $76.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a current ratio of 1.94. The business has a fifty day moving average of $71.36 and a two-hundred day moving average of $68.18. The stock has a market cap of $2.03 billion, a PE ratio of 34.62 and a beta of 1.21.

Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The insurance provider reported $1.17 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $667.94 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $638.40 million. Stewart Information Services had a net margin of 2.47% and a return on equity of 5.77%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.86 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Stewart Information Services Co. will post 3.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Stewart Information Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.72%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. This is a boost from Stewart Information Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Stewart Information Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 94.34%.

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.