Institutional investors are beginning to have major doubts about certain mortgage stocks, reducing their positions in companies such as PHH Corp. and Ocwen Financial as they struggle to present convincing evidence that better days are ahead – especially with 2016 just months away. Ocwen, in particular, has been savaged by investors over the past 18 months, its share price falling from an all-time high of $60 to $5.66. This past summer, Ocwen’s share price stabilized somewhat before getting clobbered early this week after disclosing that it expects to post a loss for all of 2015. For many investors it has...
A stable private mortgage insurance industry is expected to emerge as the residential real estate market continues its recovery but uncertainty related to new risk-based regulatory capital standards from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners could derail or hinder progress, according to a new analysis by Fitch Ratings. So far, the MI industry has returned to profitability with more stability in the market and the continued presence of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in the residential market. Stronger regulatory standards bode well for the industry’s stability as well, Fitch noted. The long-term viability of the MI industry does not appear...
Paul Hindman of Grid Origination Services noted that any public company CEO who does not deliver on performance mandates “is at risk, more so than ever in today’s market.”
Guaranteed Rate, a retail mortgage lender, continued to expand its business with the acquisition of new call centers and 75 loan officers from Discover Home Loans, which recently announced its decision to exit the mortgage origination business. The new loan officers will join Guaranteed Rate and help generate more loans through its new Digital Mortgage technology, which the company launched in June. The software uses encrypted cloud storage and ...