What Happened?

A number of stocks fell in the afternoon session after investors weighed higher mortgage rates, softer housing demand, and lingering policy risk around private mortgage insurance. The slide looked sector-wide rather than name-specific: mortgage insurers (NMIH, MTG, ESNT, RDN, ACT) and title/real-estate services names (STC, FNF, FAF) fell together, a pattern typically tied to shared exposures—origination volumes, home-purchase activity, and credit performance—rather than isolated company news. Fresh housing-finance data have been unhelpful: Mortgage Bankers Association figures showed weekly mortgage applications down sharply while 30-year fixed rates pushed to multi-year highs near ~7.3%, a setup that can cool new insurance written and title/closing throughput. Separately, FHFA Director Bill Pulte’s public criticism of “unnecessary” mortgage insurance costs has already rattled the group in mid-September, keeping regulatory overhang in the mix. With rates, affordability, and policy all in focus, investors appear to be de-risking rate-sensitive housing intermediaries as a bloc.

The stock market overreacts to news, and big price drops can present good opportunities to buy high-quality stocks.

Among others, the following stocks were impacted:

• Property & Casualty Insurance company NMI Holdings (NASDAQ: NMIH) fell 8.3%. Is now the time to buy NMI Holdings? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
• Property & Casualty Insurance company MGIC Investment (NYSE: MTG) fell 7%. Is now the time to buy MGIC Investment? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
• Property & Casualty Insurance company Essent Group (NYSE: ESNT) fell 7%. Is now the time to buy Essent Group? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
• Property & Casualty Insurance company Enact Holdings (NASDAQ: ACT) fell 6.2%. Is now the time to buy Enact Holdings? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
• Property & Casualty Insurance company Stewart Information Services (NYSE: STC) fell 11.4%. Is now the time to buy Stewart Information Services? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.

Zooming In On Stewart Information Services (STC)

Stewart Information Services’s shares are not very volatile and have only had 6 moves greater than 5% over the last year. Moves this big are rare for Stewart Information Services and indicate this news significantly impacted the market’s perception of the business.

The biggest move we wrote about over the last year was 2 months ago when the stock gained 4.9% on the news that the company reported strong second-quarter 2026 earnings, delivering broad revenue growth despite a subdued housing market. Total revenues increased by $177 million, or 25%, while net income improved by $5 million, or 17%, compared to the same period in the previous year. Diluted earnings per share came in at $1.21, up from $1.13. On an adjusted basis, which often provides a clearer view of core performance, net income was $43 million, or $1.39 per share. This compares favorably to the $38 million, or $1.34 per share, reported a year earlier. The company also noted it increased spending on talent and acquisitions to support future expansion.

Stewart Information Services is down 28.5% since the beginning of the year, and at $50.06 per share, it is trading 35.1% below its 52-week high of $77.17 from November 2025. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of Stewart Information Services’s shares 5 years ago would now be looking at only $791.42.

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