First Eagle Investment Management LLC Sells 13,500 Shares of Stewart Information Services Co. (NYSE:STC)

First Eagle Investment Management LLC trimmed its stake in Stewart Information Services Co. (NYSE:STC) by 7.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 176,609 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 13,500 shares during the period. First Eagle Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Stewart Information Services were worth $11,919,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Stewart Information Services by 310.9% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 452 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 342 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV increased its position in shares of Stewart Information Services by 58.7% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,546 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $104,000 after purchasing an additional 572 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of Stewart Information Services by 9.3% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,434 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $182,000 after purchasing an additional 208 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc bought a new position in shares of Stewart Information Services in the third quarter worth approximately $205,000. Finally, Atria Investments Inc purchased a new stake in Stewart Information Services in the third quarter worth approximately $207,000. 96.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Stewart Information Services Stock Performance

NYSE:STC opened at $71.69 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $1.99 billion, a PE ratio of 27.57 and a beta of 1.19. Stewart Information Services Co. has a fifty-two week low of $58.23 and a fifty-two week high of $78.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a current ratio of 1.86. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $66.72 and a 200-day moving average price of $70.19.

Stewart Information Services (NYSE:STC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The insurance provider reported $1.12 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.01. Stewart Information Services had a return on equity of 6.81% and a net margin of 2.94%. Equities research analysts predict that Stewart Information Services Co. will post 6.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Stewart Information Services Announces Dividend

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

Stewart Information Services Company Profile

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.