MERSCORP Holdings announced Friday that it secured another victory in a state’s highest court, as the New Hampshire Supreme Court upheld MERS’ mortgage assignment rights. …read more
From:: Real Estate Wire
Fed’s Williams says U.S. will ‘weather the storm’
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — San Francisco Fed President John Williams said he was optimistic about the economic outlook. During a panel discussion about the economy, Williams said he thought the U.S. was set to “weather the storm,” according to the Wall Street Journal. Williams is not a voting member of the Fed policy committee, but his views are closely watched as he is seen as part of Fed Chairwoman Janet Yellen’s inner circle. “We are clearly on a path to raise interest rates back to more normal levels,” Williams said.
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From:: Stock Market News
Ocwen ties that bind? Altisource Residential adds former HLSS exec
In another sign that the relationship between Ocwen Financial and its affiliated companies, Altisource Portfolio Solutions, Altisource Residential Corporation, Altisource Asset Management Corporation, and Home Loan Servicing Solutions, will always be complicated, Altisource Residential and Altisource Asset Management announced Friday that Michael Lubin is joining both companies. Lubin joins the Altisource companies from Home Loan Servicing Solutions. …read more
From:: Real Estate Wire
Warren Buffett plans to webcast Berkshire’s annual meeting: WSJ
Warren Buffett, one of the most closely followed investors in the world, plans to webcast Berkshire Hathaway Inc.’s annual meeting which typically draws thousands of attendees each year, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday. Berkshire will hold this year’s meeting on April 30 at the CenturyLink Center in Omaha, Neb. In years past, shareholders from across America and even as far away as China have convened to observe Buffett and his partner Charlie Munger field questions on a wide array of topics, including the company’s succession plans.
Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.
From:: Stock Market News
Here’s how retail lenders can compete in this digital world
A side effect of digital mortgages as they gain prominence is the slow extinction of brick-and-mortar lending branches. However, it’s not all doom and gloom for branches. In order to still survive, this is what retail lenders need to do. …read more
From:: Real Estate Wire
XPO Logistics cuts 190 positions to streamline operations
XPO Logistics Inc. late Friday said it eliminated 190 positions, affecting less than 1% of the workforce, primarily to address redundancies with its acquisition of Con-way Inc. last year, The move is expected to cut costs by $20 million annually and boost operating profit by at least $170 million over two years. Shares of XPO were unchanged in extended trading after surging 7.9% during the regular session.
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From:: Stock Market News
Jeff Bezos may have lost $4 billion on his Amazon stock Friday
Jeff Bezos had a pretty bad day Friday, and an even worse month, as the founder, chief executive and, more importantly, the largest shareholder of Amazon.com Inc. . The stock plunged $48.35, or 7.6%, on Friday, the biggest one-day price drop since Amazon went public in May 1997, in the wake of its fourth-quarter results. Bezos owned 82,914,455 Amazon shares, or about 18% of the shares outstanding, as of Dec. 31, according to FactSet, meaning he may have lost $4.01 billion on Friday. With the stock down $88.89, or 13%, year to date, Bezos may have lost $7.37 billion so far this year. But no need to feel too bad for Bezos, because at Friday’s closing price of $587, his holdings are still worth $48.67 billion.
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From:: Stock Market News
Stocks end sharply higher, see large monthly losses
U.S. stocks closed sharply higher on Friday for a second straight weekly gain. But despite Friday’s big rise, the main indexes ended January with steep monthly losses of 5% to 8%. The S&P 500 gained 46.65 points, or 2.5%, to 1,940.02 and gained 1.7% over the week. The main benchmark fell 5% over the month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 394.45 points, or 2.5%, to 16,466.09 and booked a 2.3% weekly gain. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite ended the day up 107.28 points, or 2.4%, at 4,613.95 and finished the week roughly where it started it.
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From:: Stock Market News
Vantiv to stop processing payments for FanDuel, DraftKings: report
Payments processor Vantiv will stop processing payments for fantasy sports sites FanDuel and DraftKings, the New York Times reported, citing a letter the newspaper obtained. The fantasy sports sites have been targeted by several states, notably New York, over allegations they break gambling laws. According to the Times report, Vantiv will stop processing such payments at the end of February.
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From:: Stock Market News
WTI oil drops more than 9% for the month
Oil futures settled higher on Friday, as traders held onto hope for a crude production cut and the market digested a sixth straight weekly fall in the number of active U.S. oil drilling rigs. March West Texas Intermediate crude settled at $33.62 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, up 40 cents, or 1.2% for the session. Tracking the most-active contracts, prices fell 9.2% for the month. For the week, they gained 4.4%.
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From:: Stock Market News