Third quarter 2026
Filed Oct 21, 2026Stewart Reports Third Quarter 2026 Results
Total revenues increased to $900.7 million from $796.9 million, led by Real Estate Solutions and title operating-revenue growth, but GAAP and adjusted pretax income, net income and diluted EPS declined, while operating cash flow was lower.
Key metrics
shortened, hover for the filing’s print| Metric | Value | q/q | y/y |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total revenues, quarter ended September 30, 2026GAAP | $900.7M | – | 13 % |
| Adjusted total revenues, quarter ended September 30, 2026non-GAAP | $900.7M | – | 14 % |
| Total operating revenues, quarter ended September 30, 2026GAAP | $887.0M | – | – |
| Investment income, quarter ended September 30, 2026GAAP | $13.7M | – | – |
| Net realized and unrealized gains, quarter ended September 30, 2026GAAP | $24K | – | (100 )% |
| Employee costs, quarter ended September 30, 2026GAAP | $230.9M | – | 9 percent |
| Other operating expenses, quarter ended September 30, 2026GAAP | $254.7M | – | 38 percent |
| Title losses and related claims, quarter ended September 30, 2026GAAP | $23.51M | – | 20 percent |
| Depreciation and amortization, quarter ended September 30, 2026GAAP | $19.29M | – | – |
| Interest expense, quarter ended September 30, 2026GAAP | $7.62M | – | – |
| Pretax income before noncontrolling interests, quarter ended September 30, 2026GAAP | $45.6M | – | (26 )% |
| Adjusted pretax income, quarter ended September 30, 2026non-GAAP | $60.3M | – | (7 )% |
| Pretax margin, quarter ended September 30, 2026GAAP | 5.1 % | – | – |
| Adjusted pretax margin, quarter ended September 30, 2026non-GAAP | 6.7 % | – | – |
| Income tax expense, quarter ended September 30, 2026GAAP | −$11.63M | – | – |
| Net income, quarter ended September 30, 2026GAAP | $33.93M | – | – |
| Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests, quarter ended September 30, 2026GAAP | −$3.61M | – | – |
| Net income attributable to Stewart, quarter ended September 30, 2026GAAP | $30.3M | – | (32 )% |
| Non-GAAP adjustments, after taxes, quarter ended September 30, 2026non-GAAP | $10.9M | – | – |
| Adjusted net income attributable to Stewart, quarter ended September 30, 2026non-GAAP | $41.2M | – | (12 )% |
| GAAP net income per diluted Stewart share, quarter ended September 30, 2026GAAP | $0.98 per diluted share | – | – |
| Adjusted net income per diluted Stewart share, quarter ended September 30, 2026non-GAAP | $1.33 per diluted share | – | – |
| Diluted average shares outstanding, quarter ended September 30, 2026GAAP | 30,976 (000) | – | – |
| Net cash provided by operations, quarter ended September 30, 2026GAAP | $46.6M | – | – |
| Total revenues, nine months ended September 30, 2026GAAP | $2.58B | – | 21 % |
| Adjusted total revenues, nine months ended September 30, 2026non-GAAP | $2.57B | – | 21 % |
| Pretax income before noncontrolling interests, nine months ended September 30, 2026GAAP | $124.3M | – | 9 % |
| Adjusted pretax income, nine months ended September 30, 2026non-GAAP | $156.3M | – | 20 % |
| Pretax margin, nine months ended September 30, 2026GAAP | 4.8 % | – | – |
| Adjusted pretax margin, nine months ended September 30, 2026non-GAAP | 6.1 % | – | – |
| Net income attributable to Stewart, nine months ended September 30, 2026GAAP | $84.5M | – | 7 % |
| Adjusted net income attributable to Stewart, nine months ended September 30, 2026non-GAAP | $108.2M | – | 18 % |
| GAAP net income per share, nine months ended September 30, 2026GAAP | $2.74 | – | – |
| Adjusted net income per share, nine months ended September 30, 2026non-GAAP | $3.50 | – | – |
| Net cash provided by operations, nine months ended September 30, 2026GAAP | $102.6M | – | – |
Segments
| Segment | Revenue | q/q | y/y |
|---|---|---|---|
| Title segment, quarter ended September 30, 2026Title segment operating revenues increased $30.6 million (5 percent), 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. | $704.2M | – | 4 % |
| Real Estate Solutions segment, quarter ended September 30, 2026Segment revenues increased $79.9 million (68 percent), primarily driven by the recent MCS acquisition and higher revenues from credit information and valuation services. | $196.5M | – | 68 % |
What drove it
- Agency gross title revenues increased $24.6 million (7 percent), and net of agency retention, agency title revenues increased $5.0 million (8 percent).
- Domestic commercial revenues increased $7.3 million (9 percent) due to higher commercial transaction activity; domestic commercial closed orders improved 18 percent.
- Real Estate Solutions growth was driven by the recent MCS acquisition and higher revenues from credit information and valuation services.
- Average domestic residential fee per file was $3,200 and was comparable to the prior year quarter.
Concerns
- The company said it faced increased industry headwinds that it anticipates will continue into next year.
- Title segment pretax income was $47.5 million, down 23 %, and adjusted pretax income was $51.9 million, down 15 %.
- Title investment income decreased $1.1 million (8 percent), primarily due to lower interest income resulting from reduced eligible escrow balances.
- Average domestic commercial fee per file decreased 8 percent to $16,300 compared to $17,700, primarily due to reduced data center and energy transaction size and volume.
- Real Estate Solutions pretax margin was 5.2 % compared to 6.2 %, and adjusted pretax margin was 10.5 % compared to 11.3 %.
- Corporate expenses increased to $12.2 million from $9.5 million, primarily due to higher interest expense on increased debt balances.
What to watch
- Industry headwinds that management anticipates will continue into next year.
- Domestic commercial closed orders and average domestic commercial fee per file.
- Title segment investment income and eligible escrow balances.
- Real Estate Solutions costs of services and the impact of the recent MCS acquisition and related integration costs.
- Operating cash flow, which was $46.6 million in the third quarter 2026 versus $92.6 million in the third quarter 2025.
Balance sheet and cash flow
- Cash and cash equivalents were 152,313 (In thousands of dollars) at September 30, 2026, compared to 321,775 (In thousands of dollars) at December 31, 2025.
- Short-term investments were 53,661 (In thousands of dollars) at September 30, 2026, compared to 47,899 (In thousands of dollars) at December 31, 2025.
- Investments in debt and equity securities, at fair value were 596,168 (In thousands of dollars) at September 30, 2026, compared to 606,170 (In thousands of dollars) at December 31, 2025.
- Notes payable were 654,911 (In thousands of dollars) at September 30, 2026, compared to 646,606 (In thousands of dollars) at December 31, 2025.
- Total stockholders’ equity was 1,683,277 (In thousands of dollars) at September 30, 2026, compared to 1,650,398 (In thousands of dollars) at December 31, 2025.
- Book value per share was 54.82 at September 30, 2026, compared to 54.30 at December 31, 2025.
- Net cash provided by operations was $46.6 million in the third quarter 2026, compared to $92.6 million in the third quarter 2025.
Analysis
Stewart reported third-quarter total revenues of $900.7 million, compared with $796.9 million in the prior year quarter. Adjusted total revenues were also $900.7 million, compared with $791.3 million. Growth was concentrated in Real Estate Solutions, where revenue increased 68 % to $196.5 million, driven by the recent MCS acquisition and higher credit information and valuation-services revenue. Title segment revenue was $704.2 million, up 4 %, while title operating revenues increased 5 % to $690.5 million.
Profitability declined despite higher revenue. GAAP pretax income was $45.6 million versus $61.2 million, and adjusted pretax income was $60.3 million versus $64.5 million. GAAP pretax margin declined to 5.1 % from 7.7 %, while adjusted pretax margin declined to 6.7 % from 8.1 %. Net income attributable to Stewart was $30.3 million, or $0.98 per diluted share, compared with $44.3 million, or $1.55 per diluted share. Adjusted net income attributable to Stewart was $41.2 million, or $1.33 per diluted share, compared with $46.7 million, or $1.64 per diluted share.
Within Title, direct title revenue increased 2 % to $305.8 million. Domestic commercial revenue increased 9 % to $86.4 million as domestic commercial closed orders improved 18 %, but the average domestic commercial fee per file declined 8 percent to $16,300 from $17,700. International revenue decreased $4.2 million (10 percent), primarily due to a large commercial transaction that closed in the prior year quarter. Title investment income declined 8 percent, and prior-year results included $5.6 million of pretax net realized and unrealized gains.
Cost growth and mix weighed on margins. Consolidated employee costs increased $19.7 million (9 percent), although they improved to 26.0 percent of total operating revenues from 27.2 percent. Consolidated other operating expenses increased $69.6 million (38 percent) and rose to ადგენി 28.7 percent of total operating revenues from 23.8 percent, primarily due to Real Estate Solutions service expenses and higher title search and third-party service fees. Real Estate Solutions pretax income increased 41 % to $10.3 million, but its pretax margin declined to 5.2 % from 6.2 %.
Cash generation was lower in the quarter. Net cash provided by operations was $46.6 million compared with $92.6 million, primarily due to lower net income and the timing of payments related to operating liabilities. At September 30, 2026, cash and cash equivalents were 152,313 (In thousands of dollars) and notes payable were 654,911 (In thousands of dollars). The release provided no quantitative financial outlook, while management stated that increased industry headwinds are anticipated to continue into next year.
Management, verbatim
This quarter, we faced increased industry headwinds that we anticipate will continue into next year. We remain focused on growing market share across our businesses while maintaining disciplined operational execution in this challenging market environment.
Fred Eppinger, chief executive officer
Not in the filing
stated, not guessed- Forward quantitative guidance
- Prior outlook for comparison
- Gross profit and gross margin
- Free cash flow
- Share repurchases
- Dividends
- Tax rate
- Quarter-over-quarter comparisons
- Capital-return activity
AlphAI analysis generated from the company’s SEC earnings filing (Form 8-K Item 2.02, or Form 6-K for a foreign private issuer). Every figure was cross-checked against the filing text; consensus estimates, price targets and share-price reactions are not shown because they are not in the filing. AI-generated research, not investment advice.