Short Interest in Investors Title (NASDAQ:ITIC) Drops By 25.8%

Investors Title (NASDAQ:ITIC - Get Free Report) saw a significant decline in short interest in the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 17,000 shares, a decline of 25.8% from the February 13th total of 22,900 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 10,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.7 days. Currently, 1.2% of the company's shares are sold short.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Investors Title

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ITIC. Deutsche Bank AG raised its stake in shares of Investors Title by 33.6% during the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 1,448 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $343,000 after acquiring an additional 364 shares in the last quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Investors Title during the 4th quarter valued at $513,000. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in shares of Investors Title by 6.7% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 7,951 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,882,000 after buying an additional 497 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Investors Title by 6.5% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 14,562 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $3,448,000 after buying an additional 892 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its position in shares of Investors Title by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 2,553 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $604,000 after buying an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. 41.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Investors Title Stock Performance

NASDAQ ITIC traded down $2.04 during trading on Thursday, hitting $242.54. The stock had a trading volume of 10,303 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,388. Investors Title has a one year low of $146.41 and a one year high of $290.40. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $230.18 and a 200 day simple moving average of $239.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $456.95 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.76 and a beta of 0.97.

Investors Title (NASDAQ:ITIC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The insurance provider reported $4.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $70.63 million during the quarter. Investors Title had a return on equity of 11.84% and a net margin of 12.03%.

Investors Title Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 24th will be issued a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.76%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 24th. Investors Title's payout ratio is presently 11.20%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Investors Title from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th.

About Investors Title

Investors Title Company engages in the issuance of residential and commercial title insurance for residential, institutional, commercial, and industrial properties. The company underwrites land title insurance for owners and mortgagees as a primary insurer; and assumes the reinsurance of title insurance risks from other title insurance companies.