Victory Capital Management Inc. Boosts Position in Stewart Information Services Co. (NYSE:STC)

Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Stewart Information Services Co. (NYSE:STC - Free Report) by 7.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 985,673 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 65,965 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 3.56% of Stewart Information Services worth $73,669,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Millennium Management LLC raised its position in shares of Stewart Information Services by 906.9% during the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 656,143 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $40,733,000 after buying an additional 590,977 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA bought a new stake in Stewart Information Services in the 2nd quarter valued at $8,530,000. Emerald Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Stewart Information Services in the 3rd quarter worth $5,330,000. Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust bought a new position in shares of Stewart Information Services during the 3rd quarter valued at about $3,770,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Stewart Information Services by 0.8% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,922,385 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $125,070,000 after purchasing an additional 15,910 shares in the last quarter. 96.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Stewart Information Services Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of Stewart Information Services stock traded down $0.35 on Thursday, reaching $72.53. The company had a trading volume of 77,295 shares, compared to its average volume of 185,034. The firm has a market cap of $2.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.41 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.94 and a quick ratio of 1.94. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $71.37 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $68.03. Stewart Information Services Co. has a 1 year low of $45.12 and a 1 year high of $76.83.

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

Stewart Information Services Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.76%. This is an increase from Stewart Information Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Stewart Information Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 94.34%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Stewart Information Services from $71.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. BTIG Research raised their target price on shares of Stewart Information Services from $68.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $79.00 price target on shares of Stewart Information Services in a research note on Thursday, July 25th.

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.