Stewart Reports Third Quarter 2026 Results
HOUSTON, Oct. 21, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Stewart Information Services Corporation (NYSE: STC) today reported net income attributable to Stewart of $30.3 million ($0.98 per diluted share) for the third quarter 2026, compared to net income attributable to Stewart of $44.3 million ($1.55 per diluted share) for the third quarter 2025. On an adjusted basis, net income for the third quarter 2026 was $41.2 million ($1.33 per diluted share) compared to net income of $46.7 million ($1.64 per diluted share) in the third quarter 2025. Pretax income before noncontrolling interests for the third quarter 2026 was $45.6 million ($60.3 million on an adjusted basis) compared to $61.2 million ($64.5 million on an adjusted basis) for the third quarter 2025.
Third quarter 2025 results included $5.6 million of pretax net realized and unrealized gains, primarily driven by $4.3 million of net unrealized gains on fair value changes of equity securities investments in the title segment and a $1.2 million realized gain on a sale of real property in the corporate segment.
"This quarter, we faced increased industry headwinds that we anticipate will continue into next year," commented Fred Eppinger, chief executive officer. "We remain focused on growing market share across our businesses while maintaining disciplined operational execution in this challenging market environment."
Selected Financial Information
Summary results of operations are as follows (dollars in millions, except per share amounts, pretax margin and adjusted pretax margin, and amounts may not add as presented due to rounding):
Quarter Ended
September 30,
Nine Months Ended
September 30,
2026
2025
2026
2025
Total revenues
900.7
796.9
2,581.2
2,131.1
Pretax income before noncontrolling interests
45.6
61.2
124.3
113.8
Income tax expense
(11.6)
(13.0)
(29.5)
(24.6)
Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests
(3.6)
(3.9)
(10.2)
(10.0)
Net income attributable to Stewart
30.3
44.3
84.5
79.3
Non-GAAP adjustments, after taxes*
10.9
2.4
23.7
12.4
Adjusted net income attributable to Stewart*
41.2
46.7
108.2
91.6
Pretax margin
5.1 %
7.7 %
4.8 %
5.3 %
Adjusted pretax margin*
6.7 %
8.1 %
6.1 %
6.2 %
Net income per diluted Stewart share
0.98
1.55
2.74
2.79
Adjusted net income per diluted Stewart share*
1.33
1.64
3.50
3.23
*Adjusted net income, adjusted pretax margin and adjusted net income per diluted share are non-GAAP measures. See Appendix A for explanation and reconciliation of non-GAAP adjustments.
Title Segment
Summary results of the title segment are as follows (dollars in millions, except pretax margin and adjusted pretax margin):
Quarter Ended September 30,
2026
2025
% Change
Operating revenues
690.5
659.9
5 %
Investment income
13.7
14.8
(8 %)
Net realized and unrealized gains
-
4.2
(100 %)
Pretax income
47.5
62.0
(23 %)
Non-GAAP adjustments to pretax income*
4.4
(1.2)
473 %
Adjusted pretax income*
51.9
60.8
(15 %)
Pretax margin
6.7 %
9.1 %
Adjusted pretax margin*
7.4 %
9.0 %
* Adjusted pretax income and adjusted pretax margin are non-GAAP financial measures. See Appendix A for explanation and reconciliation of non-GAAP adjustments.
Title segment operating revenues increased $30.6 million (5 percent) in the third quarter 2026 compared to the third quarter 2025, primarily driven by growth in agency title revenues. Agency gross title revenues increased $24.6 million (7 percent), while direct title revenues increased $6.1 million (2 percent) primarily due to higher domestic commercial activity during the third quarter 2026. Net of agency retention, agency title revenues increased $5.0 million (8 percent), consistent with the increase in gross agency revenues.
Combined employee costs and other operating expenses increased $16.5 million (6 percent) in the third quarter 2026 compared to the prior year quarter, primarily driven by higher title revenues, which resulted in increased salaries and employee benefits and higher title search and third-party service fees. As a percentage of title operating revenues, these expenses were approximately 44 percent, which is comparable to the third quarter 2025. Title loss expense increased $4.0 million (20 percent) compared with the prior year quarter, primarily due to higher title revenues. The title loss ratio, as a percentage of title operating revenues, remained comparable to the prior year quarter.
Investment income decreased $1.1 million (8 percent) in the third quarter 2026, primarily due to lower interest income resulting from reduced eligible escrow balances compared to the prior year quarter. Net realized and unrealized gains in the third quarter 2025 were primarily related to net unrealized gains on fair value changes of equity securities investments. In addition to net realized and unrealized gains, adjusted title pretax income included total non-GAAP expense adjustments of $4.4 million and $3.0 million, in the third quarters 2026 and 2025, respectively, primarily related to acquisition-related intangible asset amortization, third-party acquisition consulting fees and severance expenses (refer to Appendix A for details).
Direct title revenues information is presented below (dollars in millions):
Quarter Ended September 30,
2026
2025
% Change
Non-commercial:
Domestic
179.8
176.8
2 %
International
32.3
32.5
(1 %)
212.2
209.3
1 %
Commercial:
Domestic
86.4
79.1
9 %
International
7.3
11.3
(35 %)
93.7
90.4
4 %
Total direct title revenues
305.8
299.7
2 %
Domestic commercial revenues increased $7.3 million (9 percent) in the third quarter 2026, primarily due to higher commercial transaction activity. Domestic commercial closed orders improved 18 percent, while the average domestic commercial fee per file decreased 8 percent to $16,300 compared to $17,700 from the prior year quarter, primarily due to reduced data center and energy transaction size and volume. Domestic non-commercial revenues increased $3.0 million (2 percent) in the third quarter 2026. Average domestic residential fee per file in the third quarter 2026 was $3,200, which was comparable to the prior year quarter. Total international revenues decreased $4.2 million (10 percent) in the third quarter 2026, primarily due to a large commercial transaction that closed in the prior year quarter.
Real Estate Solutions Segment
Summary results of the real estate solutions (RES) segment are as follows (dollars in millions, except pretax margin and adjusted pretax margin):
Quarter Ended September 30,
2026
2025
% Change
Total revenues
196.5
116.6
68 %
Pretax income
10.3
7.3
41 %
Non-GAAP adjustments to pretax income*
10.3
5.9
75 %
Adjusted pretax income*
20.6
13.2
56 %
Pretax margin
5.2 %
6.2 %
Adjusted pretax margin*
10.5 %
11.3 %
* Adjusted pretax income and adjusted pretax margin are non-GAAP financial measures. See Appendix A for an explanation and reconciliation of non-GAAP adjustments.
Segment revenues increased $79.9 million (68 percent) in the third quarter 2026 compared to the prior year quarter, primarily driven by the recent MCS acquisition and higher revenues from credit information and valuation services. Combined employee costs and other operating expenses increased $72.7 million (71 percent), primarily due to higher costs of services associated with increased revenues and increased employee count from acquisitions. Non-GAAP adjustments to pretax income in both third quarters 2026 and 2025 were primarily related to acquisition-related intangible asset amortization. Additionally, third quarter 2026 adjustments included MCS integration costs.
Corporate Segment
Expenses attributable to corporate operations for the third quarter 2026 increased to $12.2 million compared to $9.5 million in the third quarter 2025, primarily due to higher interest expense on increased debt balances.
Expenses
Consolidated employee costs increased $19.7 million (9 percent) in the third quarter 2026 compared to the prior year quarter, primarily due to higher salaries and employee benefit expenses resulting from a 12 percent higher average employee count. As a percentage of total operating revenues, consolidated employee costs improved to 26.0 percent in the third quarter 2026, compared to 27.2 percent in the prior year quarter, primarily due to higher operating revenues.
Consolidated other operating expenses increased $69.6 million (38 percent) in the third quarter 2026 compared to the prior year quarter, primarily due to increased real estate solutions service expenses and higher title search and third-party services fees associated with higher operating revenues. As a percentage of total operating revenues, consolidated other operating expenses increased to 28.7 percent compared to 23.8 percent in the prior year quarter primarily due to higher costs of services from real estate solutions.
Other
Net cash provided by operations was $46.6 million in the third quarter 2026, compared to $92.6 million in the third quarter 2025, primarily due to lower net income and the timing of payments related to operating liabilities during the quarter.
Third Quarter Earnings Call
Stewart will hold a conference call to discuss the third quarter 2026 earnings at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time on Thursday, October 22, 2026. To participate, dial 833-419-0865 (USA) or 785-838-9333 (International) – access code STCQ326. Additionally, participants can listen to the conference call through Stewart's Investor Relations website at https://investors.stewart.com/news-and-events/events/default.aspx. The conference call replay will be available from 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time on October 22, 2026 until midnight on October 29, 2026 by dialing (800) 839-5241 (USA) or (402) 220-2698 (International).
About Stewart
Stewart (NYSE-STC) is a global real estate services company, offering products and services through our direct operations, network of Stewart Trusted Providers™ and family of companies. From residential and commercial title insurance and closing and settlement services to specialized offerings for the mortgage and real estate industries, we offer the comprehensive service, deep expertise and solutions our customers need for any real estate transaction. At Stewart, we are dedicated to becoming the premier title services company and we are committed to doing so by partnering with our customers to create mutual success. Learn more at stewart.com.
Cautionary statement regarding forward-looking statements. Certain statements in this press release are "forward-looking statements", including statements related to Stewart's future business plans and expectations, including our plans to achieve market growth and our expectations regarding challenging industry conditions. Forward-looking statements, by their nature, are subject to various risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results to differ materially. Such risks and uncertainties include the volatility of general economic conditions, including economic changes that may result from new or increased tariffs, trade restrictions or geopolitical tensions, and adverse changes in the level of real estate activity, as well as a number of other risks and uncertainties discussed in detail in our documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2025, and if applicable, as supplemented by any risk factors contained in our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, and our Current Reports on Form 8-K filed subsequently. We expressly disclaim any obligation to update, amend or clarify any forward-looking statements contained in this press release to reflect events or circumstances that may arise after the date hereof, except as may be required by applicable law.
ST-IR
STEWART INFORMATION SERVICES CORPORATION
CONDENSED STATEMENTS OF INCOME
(In thousands of dollars, except per share amounts and except where noted)
Quarter Ended
September 30,
Nine Months Ended
September 30,
2026
2025
2026
2025
Revenues:
Title revenues:
Direct title
305,770
299,690
882,537
822,631
Agency title
384,739
360,186
1,094,781
928,989
Real estate solutions
196,446
116,607
555,164
326,334
Total operating revenues
886,955
776,483
2,532,482
2,077,954
Investment income
13,700
14,819
42,390
43,733
Net realized and unrealized gains
24
5,614
6,352
9,394
900,679
796,916
2,581,224
2,131,081
Expenses:
Amounts retained by agencies
319,050
299,523
910,082
773,012
Employee costs
230,921
211,221
693,080
605,240
Other operating expenses
254,729
185,165
713,297
519,605
Title losses and related claims
23,514
19,546
64,022
58,701
Depreciation and amortization
19,290
15,391
53,778
45,863
Interest
7,618
4,898
22,685
14,812
855,122
735,744
2,456,944
2,017,233
Income before taxes and noncontrolling interests
45,557
61,172
124,280
113,848
Income tax expense
(11,630)
(12,975)
(29,533)
(24,600)
Net income
33,927
48,197
94,747
89,248
Less net income attributable to noncontrolling interests
3,606
3,938
10,245
9,990
Net income attributable to Stewart
30,321
44,259
84,502
79,258
Net earnings per diluted share attributable to Stewart
0.98
1.55
2.74
2.79
Diluted average shares outstanding (000)
30,976
28,491
30,875
28,386
Selected financial information:
Net cash provided by operations
46,610
92,645
102,619
116,146
Other comprehensive (loss) income
(11,339)
(1,922)
(17,984)
18,903
Third Quarter Domestic Order Counts:
Opened Orders
2026:
July
August
Sept
Total
Closed Orders
2026:
July
August
Sept
Total
Commercial
1,830
1,583
2,135
5,548
Commercial
1,788
1,586
1,928
5,302
Purchase
16,976
16,295
15,307
48,578
Purchase
12,324
11,112
10,893
34,329
Refinancing
6,347
5,995
5,879
18,221
Refinancing
3,913
3,702
3,824
11,439
Other
3,764
3,534
6,362
13,660
Other
1,985
4,603
4,106
10,694
Total
28,917
27,407
29,683
86,007
Total
20,010
21,003
20,751
61,764
Opened Orders
2025:
July
August
Sept
Total
Closed Orders
2025:
July
August
Sept
Total
Commercial
1,391
1,565
1,564
4,520
Commercial
1,443
1,514
1,521
4,478
Purchase
18,255
16,378
16,028
50,661
Purchase
12,601
12,016
11,592
36,209
Refinancing
6,620
6,961
8,818
22,399
Refinancing
4,113
4,096
4,569
12,778
Other
2,971
4,277
2,575
9,823
Other
2,060
1,834
1,953
5,847
Total
29,237
29,181
28,985
87,403
Total
20,217
19,460
19,635
59,312
STEWART INFORMATION SERVICES CORPORATION
CONDENSED BALANCE SHEETS
(In thousands of dollars)
September 30,
2026
December 31,
2025
Assets:
Cash and cash equivalents
152,313
321,775
Short-term investments
53,661
47,899
Investments in debt and equity securities, at fair value
596,168
606,170
Receivables – premiums from agencies
38,731
38,286
Receivables – other
202,639
159,583
Allowance for uncollectible amounts
(8,889)
(7,805)
Property and equipment, net
104,711
85,330
Operating lease assets, net
117,608
106,034
Title plants
84,108
81,670
Goodwill
1,418,014
1,271,958
Intangible assets, net of amortization
291,377
325,135
Deferred tax assets
8,139
7,656
Other assets
238,261
209,114
3,296,841
3,252,805
Liabilities:
Notes payable
654,911
646,606
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities
236,784
255,852
Operating lease liabilities
133,420
122,153
Estimated title losses
521,498
524,473
Deferred tax liabilities
66,951
53,323
1,613,564
1,602,407
Stockholders' equity:
Common Stock and additional paid-in capital
535,941
520,243
Retained earnings
1,180,234
1,145,415
Accumulated other comprehensive loss
(39,892)
(21,908)
Treasury stock
(2,666)
(2,666)
Stockholders' equity attributable to Stewart
1,673,617
1,641,084
Noncontrolling interests
9,660
9,314
Total stockholders' equity
1,683,277
1,650,398
3,296,841
3,252,805
Number of shares outstanding (000)
30,526
30,223
Book value per share
54.82
54.30
STEWART INFORMATION SERVICES CORPORATION
SEGMENT INFORMATION
(In thousands of dollars)
Quarter Ended:
September 30, 2026
September 30, 2025
Title
Real
Estate
Solutions
Corporate
Total
Title
Real
Estate
Solutions
Corporate
Total
Revenues:
Operating revenues
690,509
196,446
-
886,955
659,876
116,607
-
776,483
Investment income
13,664
36
-
13,700
14,787
32
-
14,819
Net realized and unrealized gains
24
-
-
24
4,236
-
1,378
5,614
704,197
196,482
-
900,679
678,899
116,639
1,378
796,916
Expenses:
Amounts retained by agencies
319,050
-
-
319,050
299,523
-
-
299,523
Employee costs
203,066
25,109
2,746
230,921
191,598
16,094
3,529
211,221
Other operating expenses
102,516
150,202
2,011
254,729
97,482
86,479
1,204
185,165
Title losses and related claims
23,514
-
-
23,514
19,546
-
-
19,546
Depreciation and amortization
8,145
10,855
290
19,290
8,356
6,777
258
15,391
Interest
455
3
7,160
7,618
419
-
4,479
4,898
656,746
186,169
12,207
855,122
616,924
109,350
9,470
735,744
Income (loss) before taxes
47,451
10,313
(12,207)
45,557
61,975
7,289
(8,092)
61,172
Nine Months Ended:
September 30, 2026
September 30, 2025
Title
Real
Estate
Solutions
Corporate
Total
Title
Real
Estate
Solutions
Corporate
Total
Revenues:
Operating revenues
1,977,318
555,164
-
2,532,482
1,751,620
326,334
-
2,077,954
Investment income
42,280
110
-
42,390
43,643
90
-
43,733
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses)
6,552
-
(200)
6,352
8,059
-
1,335
9,394
2,026,150
555,274
(200)
2,581,224
1,803,322
326,424
1,335
2,131,081
Expenses:
Amounts retained by agencies
910,082
-
-
910,082
773,012
-
-
773,012
Employee costs
610,760
72,852
9,468
693,080
549,634
45,266
10,340
605,240
Other operating expenses
294,102
414,405
4,790
713,297
272,241
243,494
3,870
519,605
Title losses and related claims
64,022
-
-
64,022
58,701
-
-
58,701
Depreciation and amortization
24,828
28,160
790
53,778
25,413
19,574
876
45,863
Interest
1,367
11
21,307
22,685
1,265
2
13,545
14,812
1,905,161
515,428
36,355
2,456,944
1,680,266
308,336
28,631
2,017,233
Income (loss) before taxes
120,989
39,846
(36,555)
124,280
123,056
18,088
(27,296)
113,848
Appendix A
Non-GAAP Adjustments
Management uses a variety of financial and operational measurements other than its financial statements prepared in accordance with United States Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) to analyze its performance. These include: (1) adjusted revenues, which are reported revenues adjusted for net realized and unrealized gains and losses and (2) adjusted pretax income and adjusted net income, which are reported pretax income and reported net income after earnings from noncontrolling interests, respectively, adjusted for net realized and unrealized gains and losses, acquisition-related intangible asset amortization, acquisition and integration expenses (related to third-party acquisition consulting fees and integration of the recent MCS acquisition), and severance and office closure expenses. Adjusted diluted earnings per share (adjusted diluted EPS) is calculated using adjusted net income divided by the diluted average weighted outstanding shares. Adjusted pretax margin is calculated using adjusted pretax income divided by adjusted total revenues. Management views these measures as important performance measures of core profitability for its operations and as key components of its internal financial reporting. Management believes investors benefit from having access to the same financial measures that management uses.
Below are reconciliations of the non-GAAP financial measures used by management to the most directly comparable GAAP measures for the quarter and nine months ended September 30, 2026 and 2025 (dollars in millions, except shares, per share amounts and pretax margins, and amounts may not add as presented due to rounding).
Quarter Ended September 30,
Nine Months Ended
September 30,
2026
2025
% Chg
2026
2025
% Chg
Total revenues
900.7
796.9
13 %
2,581.2
2,131.1
21 %
Non-GAAP revenue adjustment:
Net realized and unrealized gains
-
(5.6)
(6.4)
(9.4)
Adjusted total revenues
900.7
791.3
14 %
2,574.9
2,121.7
21 %
Net realized and unrealized gains:
Net unrealized gains on equity securities fair value changes
-
4.3
6.5
9.9
Net gains (losses) from fixed asset disposals
-
1.2
(0.2)
0.8
Net (losses) gains on sale of securities investments
-
(0.1)
0.4
(0.4)
Net losses from acquisition liability adjustments
-
-
-
(1.0)
Other items, net
-
0.2
(0.3)
0.1
Total
-
5.6
(100 %)
6.4
9.4
(32 %)
Pretax income
45.6
61.2
(26 %)
124.3
113.8
9 %
Non-GAAP pretax adjustments:
Net realized and unrealized gains
-
(5.6)
(6.4)
(9.4)
Intangible asset amortization
11.4
8.5
30.7
25.2
Acquisition and integration expenses
2.4
-
6.1
-
Severance and office closure expenses
0.9
0.4
1.5
1.0
Adjusted pretax income
60.3
64.5
(7 %)
156.3
130.6
20 %
GAAP pretax margin
5.1 %
7.7 %
4.8 %
5.3 %
Adjusted pretax margin
6.7 %
8.1 %
6.1 %
6.2 %
Net income attributable to Stewart
30.3
44.3
(32 %)
84.5
79.3
7 %
Non-GAAP pretax adjustments:
Net realized and unrealized gains
-
(5.6)
(6.4)
(9.4)
Intangible asset amortization
11.4
8.5
30.7
25.2
Acquisition and integration expenses
2.4
-
6.1
-
Severance and office closure expenses
0.9
0.4
1.5
1.0
Net tax effects of non-GAAP adjustments
(3.8)
(0.9)
(8.3)
(4.3)
Non-GAAP adjustments, after taxes
10.9
2.4
23.7
12.4
Adjusted net income attributable to Stewart
41.2
46.7
(12 %)
108.2
91.6
18 %
Diluted average shares outstanding (000)
30,976
28,491
30,875
28,386
GAAP net income per share
0.98
1.55
2.74
2.79
Adjusted net income per share
1.33
1.64
3.50
3.23
Quarter Ended September 30,
Nine Months Ended
September 30,
2026
2025
% Chg
2026
2025
% Chg
Title Segment:
Revenues
704.2
678.9
4 %
2,026.2
1,803.3
12 %
Net realized and unrealized gains
-
(4.2)
(6.6)
(8.1)
Adjusted revenues
704.2
674.7
4 %
2,019.6
1,795.3
12 %
Pretax income
47.5
62.0
(23 %)
121.0
123.1
(2 %)
Non-GAAP pretax adjustments:
Net realized and unrealized gains
-
(4.2)
(6.6)
(8.1)
Intangible asset amortization
2.1
2.8
7.5
8.4
Acquisition expenses
1.5
-
1.5
-
Severance and office closure expenses
0.9
0.3
1.5
0.9
Adjusted pretax income
51.9
60.8
(15 %)
125.0
124.2
1 %
GAAP pretax margin
6.7 %
9.1 %
6.0 %
6.8 %
Adjusted pretax margin
7.4 %
9.0 %
6.2 %
6.9 %
Real Estate Solutions Segment:
Revenues
196.5
116.6
68 %
555.3
326.4
70 %
Pretax income
10.3
7.3
41 %
39.8
18.1
120 %
Non-GAAP pretax adjustment:
Intangible asset amortization
9.3
5.8
23.2
16.8
MCS integration expenses
0.9
-
4.6
-
Severance expenses
-
0.1
0.1
0.1
Adjusted pretax income
20.6
13.2
56 %
67.7
35.0
93 %
GAAP pretax margin
5.2 %
6.2 %
7.2 %
5.5 %
Adjusted pretax margin
10.5 %
11.3 %
12.2 %
10.7 %
SOURCE Stewart Information Services Corporation