Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC Boosts Stake in Stewart Information Services Co. (NYSE:STC)

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC raised its position in Stewart Information Services Co. (NYSE:STC) by 0.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 57,917 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 323 shares during the period. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.21% of Stewart Information Services worth $2,337,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in STC. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in shares of Stewart Information Services during the second quarter worth about $115,000. Federated Hermes Inc. lifted its position in shares of Stewart Information Services by 60.3% during the first quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 2,255 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $137,000 after purchasing an additional 848 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its position in shares of Stewart Information Services by 92.8% during the first quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 2,960 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $179,000 after purchasing an additional 1,425 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in Stewart Information Services in the second quarter worth about $179,000. Finally, Aigen Investment Management LP bought a new position in Stewart Information Services in the fourth quarter worth about $214,000. 96.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Stewart Information Services Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE STC opened at $46.40 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $1.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.08 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a current ratio of 2.09. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $45.10 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $34.70. Stewart Information Services Co. has a 1 year low of $35.96 and a 1 year high of $54.79.

Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 26th. The insurance provider reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.74 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $549.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $585.83 million. Stewart Information Services had a return on equity of 4.83% and a net margin of 2.06%. The business’s revenue was down 34.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.58 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Stewart Information Services Co. will post 2.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Stewart Information Services Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.475 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 14th. This is a positive change from Stewart Information Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.09%. Stewart Information Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 97.30%.

Insider Activity

In other Stewart Information Services news, CEO Frederick H. Eppinger bought 2,000 shares of Stewart Information Services stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 14th. The stock was bought at an average price of $42.00 per share, for a total transaction of $84,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 117,416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,931,472. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, Director C Allen Bradley, Jr. acquired 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 14th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $41.91 per share, for a total transaction of $41,910.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 16,175 shares in the company, valued at $677,894.25. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Frederick H. Eppinger acquired 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 14th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $42.00 per share, with a total value of $84,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 117,416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,931,472. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on STC shares. 888 reissued a “downgrade” rating on shares of Stewart Information Services in a report on Tuesday, June 27th. BTIG Research restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Stewart Information Services in a research note on Tuesday, July 18th. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Stewart Information Services in a research note on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered shares of Stewart Information Services from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $48.00 to $45.00 in a research note on Tuesday, June 27th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $34.50.

Stewart Information Services Company Profile

Stewart Information Services Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides title insurance and real estate transaction related services. The company operates through Title and Real Estate Solutions segments. The Title segment is involved in searching, examining, closing, and insuring the condition of the title to real property.