Title insurance provider Stewart Information Services (NYSE: STC) beat Wall Street’s revenue expectations in Q1 CY2026, with sales up 27.7% year on year to $781.3 million. Its non-GAAP profit of $0.78 per share was 50% above analysts’ consensus estimates.

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"I am proud of our first quarter results as they reflect the momentum we have built in each of our businesses," commented Fred Eppinger, chief executive officer.

Company Overview

Founded in 1893 during America's westward expansion when property records were often disputed, Stewart Information Services (NYSE: STC) provides title insurance and real estate services, helping homebuyers, sellers, and lenders verify property ownership and protect against title defects.

Revenue Growth

Insurers earn revenue three ways. The core insurance business itself, often called underwriting and represented in the income statement as premiums earned, is one way. Investment income from investing the “float” (premiums collected upfront not yet paid out as claims) in assets such as fixed-income assets and equities is the second way. Fees from various sources such as policy administration, annuities, or other value-added services is the third. Over the last five years, Stewart Information Services grew its revenue at a sluggish 4% compounded annual growth rate. This fell short of our benchmark for the insurance sector and is a tough starting point for our analysis.

We at StockStory place the most emphasis on long-term growth, but within financials, a half-decade historical view may miss recent interest rate changes, market returns, and industry trends. Stewart Information Services’s annualized revenue growth of 16.3% over the last two years is above its five-year trend, suggesting its demand recently accelerated. Note: Quarters not shown were determined to be outliers, impacted by outsized investment gains/losses that are not indicative of the recurring fundamentals of the business.

This quarter, Stewart Information Services reported robust year-on-year revenue growth of 27.7%, and its $781.3 million of revenue topped Wall Street estimates by 4.6%.

Net premiums earned made up 86.1% of the company’s total revenue during the last five years, meaning Stewart Information Services barely relies on non-insurance activities to drive its overall growth.

Our experience and research show the market cares primarily about an insurer’s net premiums earned growth as investment and fee income are considered more susceptible to market volatility and economic cycles.

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Book Value Per Share (BVPS)

Insurers are balance sheet businesses, collecting premiums upfront and paying out claims over time. Premiums collected but not yet paid out, often referred to as the float, are invested and create an asset base supported by a liability structure. Book value per share (BVPS) captures this dynamic by measuring these assets (investment portfolio, cash, reinsurance recoverables) less liabilities (claim reserves, debt, future policy benefits). BVPS is essentially the residual value for shareholders.

We therefore consider BVPS very important to track for insurers and a metric that sheds light on business quality. While other (and more commonly known) per-share metrics like EPS can sometimes be lumpy due to reserve releases or one-time items and can be managed or skewed while still following accounting rules, BVPS reflects long-term capital growth and is harder to manipulate.

Stewart Information Services’s BVPS grew at a mediocre 6.7% annual clip over the last five years. BVPS growth has also recently decelerated a bit to 4.6% annual growth over the last two years (from $49.22 to $53.84 per share).

Key Takeaways from Stewart Information Services’s Q1 Results

It was good to see Stewart Information Services beat analysts’ EPS expectations this quarter. We were also excited its revenue outperformed Wall Street’s estimates by a wide margin. Zooming out, we think this was a good print with some key areas of upside. The stock remained flat at $68.87 immediately following the results.

Stewart Information Services may have had a good quarter, but does that mean you should invest right now? When making that decision, it’s important to consider its valuation, business qualities, as well as what has happened in the latest quarter. We cover that in our actionable full research report which you can read here (it’s free).