Foreclosures | Mortgages | Financing
Mortgage servicers saw a solid improvement in quarterly earnings. Behind the rise were higher servicing fees and lower losses on mortgage servicing rights.
Income at independent mortgage servicers and mortgage subsidiaries of banks came to 96 basis points during the period from July 1 to Sept. 30.
Earnings soared from just 20 BPS in the previous quarter and swung from a 35-basis-point loss during the same quarter last year.
From:: Financing
While home lenders experienced an increase in average origination fees, quarterly net income still was down. Secondary marketing income drove quarter-over-quarter deterioration.
The average independent mortgage banker earned 39 basis points on loan originations during the three months ended Sept. 30.
Income deteriorated from 49 BPS during the preceding three-month period and plummeted from 74 BPS during the same three months last year.
From:: Financing
Axalta Coating Systems Ltd.’s stock was halted for news, after a Nikkei report that Japan’s Nippon Paint Holdings Co. Ltd. was closing in on a bid to buy the coatings company for about $9 billion. Axalta’s stock was down 0.8% prior to the halt. The report in Japan’s Nikkei business daily said Nippon Paint has entered into final negotiations on a tender offer, with the company likely to spend on the scale of 1 trillion yen, or the equivalent of about $8.9 billion at current exchange rates. Axalta’s current market capitalization is $9.1 billion. The stock has rocketed 31% since Axalta reported third-quarter results after the Oct. 26 close, effectively boosting its market cap by $2.2 billion. Axalta’s stock has rallied 37% year to date, while the S&P 500 has climbed 19%. Nippon Paint’s stock has gained 8.3% year to date.
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From:: Stock Market News
U.S. stocks rallied on Thursday, advancing in a broad move higher as optimism grew over the prospects for a tax overhaul out of Washington. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.5%, adding more than 350 points on the day, trading at a record 24,289. The blue-chip average broke above 24,000 for the first time on Thursday. The S&P 500 rose 30 points, or 1.1%, to 2,656, also hitting a record. The Nasdaq Composite Index rose 62 points, or 0.9%, to 6,886. The day’s advance was broad, with all 11 of the primary S&P 500 sectors higher on the day. Financials were among the biggest gainers, up 1.6%, with Goldman Sachs Group Inc. adding 3.5%. Industrial stocks were up 1.7%. Six of the 11 S&P sectors moved up by at least 1%. Optimism was building ahead of a Senate vote on a Republican-backed tax bill, which could take place by Thursday evening. On Wednesday, the Senate voted to open a formal debate on the proposed tax changes.
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From:: Stock Market News
Shares of General Electric Co. fell 0.9% in midday trade, reversing an earlier intraday gain of as much as 0.6%, to end yet another down month on a negative note. The stock has lost 9.1% this month, as it headed for the ninth-straight monthly decline. That would be the longest monthly losing streak in decades, as available data on FactSet going back to 1972 showed that the previous longest stretch of monthly declines since then was seven months. The losses come as new Chief Executive John Flannery unveiled his turnaround plan on Nov. 13. In comparison, the Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 3.4% this month, and is headed for an 8-month win streak. GE shares have plunged 38.5% during its current monthly losing streak; during the seven-month losing streak ending February 2009, at the depths of the Great Recession, the stock had plummeted 70.0%. Among Dow components, GE’s stock is the biggest percentage decliner on the day, as well as the biggest decliner on a one-month, three-month, six-month, year-to-date and one-year basis.
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From:: Stock Market News
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi on Thursday called on Rep. John Conyers, a Democrat from Michigan, to resign given the “credible” allegations of his sexual misconduct. “I pray for Congressman Conyers and his family, and wish them well. However, Congressman Conyers should resign,” Pelosi told reporters. House Speaker Paul Ryan also called on Conyers to step down. A House ethics panel is investigating allegations of sexual harassment against Conyers.
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From:: Stock Market News
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has canceled a speech scheduled for Thursday, after a report the White House is planning to replace him with CIA Director Mike Pompeo. Tillerson has scrapped a speech for 4 p.m. Eastern, according to separate reports. President Donald Trump said “He’s here. Rex is here” when asked at the White House if he wants Tillerson on the job.
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From:: Stock Market News
The Securities and Exchange Commission said Thursday its chief accountant of its division of corporate finance, Mark Kronforst, plans to leave in early January after four years in the role, and 13 years with the SEC. Kronforst currently oversees the SEC’s reporting rules for public companies’ disclosure of financial information to investors. Kyle Moffatt, currently associate director in disclosure operations, will become the division’s chief accountant. Moffatt had joined the SEC’s division of corporation finance in 2000. MarketWatch has reported extensively about how some companies have skirted the SEC’s May 2016 guidelines for non-standard accounting metrics and the new revenue recognition rules that go into effect next year.
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From:: Stock Market News
The U.S. Energy Information Administration reported Thursday that domestic supplies of natural gas fell by 33 billion cubic feet for the week ended Nov. 24. Analysts surveyed by S&P Global Platts forecast a decrease of 38 billion. Total stocks now stand at 3.693 trillion cubic feet, down 309 billion cubic feet from a year ago, and 107 billion cubic feet below the five-year average, the government said. January natural gas fell 11 cents, or 3.5%, to $3.069 per million British thermal units, down from $3.074 before the data.
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From:: Stock Market News
Members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and other major oil producers agreed in principle to keep their production-cut agreement in place through the end of 2018, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter. OPEC, however, had yet to hash out a final agreement with non-OPEC Russia, the report said. January West Texas Intermediate crude was down 3 cents at $57.27 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, after trading closer to $58 at its session high. January Brent crude [:s uk:lcof8] rose 49 cents, or 0.8%, to $63.60 a barrel on ICE Futures Europe. “The apparent agreement of [a] nine-month extension, with quarterly reviews, is broadly positive with the only better outcome being no reviews, which would make no sense,” said Brian Youngberg, senior energy analyst at Edward Jones.
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From:: Stock Market News