Fidelity National Financial, Inc. Reports Second Quarter 2011 EPS of $0.36
Jacksonville, Fla. -- (July 25, 2011) -- Fidelity National Financial, Inc. (NYSE:FNF), a leading provider of title insurance, mortgage services, specialty insurance and diversified services, today reported operating results for the three-month and six month periods ended June 30, 2011.
*Includes approximately a $63 million after-tax gain, or $0.27 per diluted share, from the sale of Sedgwick CMS in May 2010
The following are summary financial and operational results for the operating segments of FNF for the three-month periods ended June 30, 2011 and 2010:
- The preceding table only includes commercial activity from FNF's commercial offices in the national commercial division and does not attempt to capture potential commercial activity in our local offices.
"We are pleased with our financial results this quarter, particularly in our title insurance business," said Chairman William P. Foley, II. "Despite a continued sluggish real estate environment, we were able to generate an impressive 11.7% pre-tax margin in our title business, a 200 basis point increase over the prior year and a sequential increase of 240 basis points from the first quarter of this year. While refinance orders represented 51% of closed order volumes this quarter versus 46% in the prior year, we still produced a 5% increase in the fee per file. Much of this can be attributed to the strength of our commercial business, as we generated nearly $94 million in commercial revenue in the second quarter, a 38% increase over the prior year and a sequential increase of 43% from the first quarter of this year. The commercial business produced a fee per file increase of 26% over both the prior year quarter and the first quarter of this year. The impact of cost reduction initiatives also contributed to our strong 11.7% pre-tax title margin. On a sequential basis from the first quarter, title segment personnel costs and other operating expenses increased by less than 1%, while title gross operating revenue grew by nearly 11%. We will continue to manage our title business with the same discipline, seeking to maximize profitability in any market environment.
"In mid-July, we announced the sale of our flood insurance business for approximately $210 million. That flood business has been the nation's largest flood insurance provider and a very profitable and consistent business for FNF for nearly ten years. We feel this transaction is a great opportunity to realize the value of the business we have created and redeploy the capital into other uses that can continue to create increased value for our shareholders. We are proud of the flood insurance business we created and we wish them future success with their new investment partners."
Conference Call
FNF will host a call with investors and analysts to discuss second quarter 2011 results on Tuesday, July 26, 2011, beginning at 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time. A live webcast of the conference call will be available on the Events and Multimedia page of the FNF Investor Relations website at www.fnf.com. The conference call replay will be available via webcast through the FNF Investor Relations website at www.fnf.com. The telephone replay will be available from 2:00 p.m. Eastern time on July 26, 2011, through August 2, 2011, by dialing 800-475-6701 (USA) or 320-365-3844 (International). The access code will be 210285.
About FNF
Fidelity National Financial, Inc. (NYSE:FNF), is a leading provider of title insurance, mortgage services, specialty insurance and diversified services. FNF is the nation's largest title insurance company through its title insurance underwriters - Fidelity National Title, Chicago Title, Commonwealth Land Title and Alamo Title - that collectively issue more title insurance policies than any other title company in the United States. FNF also provides personal lines insurance and home warranty insurance through its specialty insurance business. In addition, among other operations, FNF owns minority interests in Ceridian Corporation, a leading provider of global human resources, payroll, benefits and payment solutions and Remy International, Inc., a leading designer, manufacturer, remanufacturer, marketer and distributor of aftermarket and original equipment electrical components for automobiles, light trucks, heavy-duty trucks and other vehicles. More information about FNF can be found at www.fnf.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Statements that are not historical facts, including statements regarding our expectations, hopes, intentions or strategies regarding the future are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based on management's beliefs, as well as assumptions made by, and information currently available to, management. Because such statements are based on expectations as to future financial and operating results and are not statements of fact, actual results may differ materially from those projected. We undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. The risks and uncertainties which forward-looking statements are subject to include, but are not limited to: changes in general economic, business and political conditions, including changes in the financial markets; weakness or adverse changes in the level of real estate activity, which may be caused by, among other things, high or increasing interest rates, a limited supply of mortgage funding or a weak U. S. economy; our potential inability to find suitable acquisition candidates, acquisitions in lines of business that will not necessarily be limited to our traditional areas of focus, or difficulties in integrating acquisitions; our dependence on distributions from our title insurance underwriters as a main source of cash flow; significant competition that our operating subsidiaries face; compliance with extensive government regulation of our operating subsidiaries; and other risks detailed in the "Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Information," "Risk Factors" and other sections of the Company's Form 10-K and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
SOURCE: Fidelity National Financial, Inc.
CONTACT: Daniel Kennedy Murphy, Senior Vice President and Treasurer, 904-854-8120, dkmurphy@fnf.com