Business information provider The First American Corp. (FAF) posted $36m in net quarterly profit — or 38 cents per share — for Q109 from $29.3m in the year-ago period. The quarter’s return to profit compares with $67m in net losses posted in Q408. “The company benefited from a surge in origination and default-related transaction activity, as well as continued expense reductions,” says chair and CEO Parker Kennedy in the earnings statement. FirstAm also posted $1.4bn in total revenues, which slipped 17% from the year-ago quarter. Corporate expenses fell 26% from the prior-year period, while the company saw order volumes across all mortgage-related businesses increase over last year. The company’s insurance operations posted a substantial quarterly increase in open orders, according to company executive Dennis Gilmore. FirstAm’s Title Insurance and Services business segment saw $792.4m in total quarterly revenue, a 26% slide from the year-ago period. The company’s direct operations closed 369,200 title orders for Q109, a 5% decrease from title orders closed in Q108. “Orders are taking longer to close as a result of the backlog in the mortgage lending industry, but we have a strong inventory of orders that are expected to close in the second quarter,” Gilmore said. Read First American’s earnings statement. Write to Diana Golobay at [email protected]. Disclosure: The author held no relevant investment positions when this story was published. Indirect holdings may exist via mutual fund investments.
First American Posts Q1 Return to Profit
Most Popular Articles
Latest Articles
Elevated mortgage rates, home prices harm affordability: Redfin
The median monthly housing payment for U.S. homebuyers rose to a record $2,775 during the four-week period ending April 14.