Lower mortgage volume drives title earnings down, Doma layoffs

At Fidelity National Financial, the parent company of three of the top seven underwriters during 2021, net earnings fell to $397 million for the first quarter, compared with $533 million in the fourth quarter and $605 million one year ago.

Title revenue, however, was stable on a year-over-year basis at $2.4 billion, versus $2.5 billion for the 2021 period. “Our title business was boosted by strong demand in the commercial market and home price appreciation in the residential purchase market, which offset the continued decline in refinance volumes in the rising interest rate environment,” said Chairman William Foley in a press release.

Open orders were down to 522,000 from 536,000 in the fourth quarter and 770,000 for the first quarter of 2021. FNF had 380,000 closed orders in the first quarter, versus 477,000 in the fourth quarter and 597,000 one year prior.

The company is spinning out 15% of its ownership stake in F&G, a life insurance company it acquired total ownership of following regulators quashing the Stewart deal.

“Looking ahead in 2022, we believe that we are well-positioned to navigate the effects of a rising interest rate environment, with scale advantage as the nationwide market leader, efficiencies from our innovative technology enabled platform, and a disciplined operating strategy and proven track record of quickly adjusting our operating model for significant fluctuations in opened and closed orders,” CEO Mike Nolan said.