Countrywide Profit Jumps 27 Percent

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Countrywide Financial Corp. on Thursday said quarterly profit rose 27 percent, even with a charge related to Hurricane Katrina, as loan product volume rose to $147 billion.


The Calabasas-based home lending company reported third-quarter net income of $633.9 million ($1.03 per share), compared with $498.1 million (81 cents) for the like period a year earlier. The results included a charge of 19 cents per share for losses related to recent hurricanes. Revenue rose 29 percent to $2.7 billion.


Analysts had expected third-quarter earnings of $1.05 per share on revenue of $2.69 billion.


Countrywide’s overall increase in profitability was mostly attributable to its Mortgage Banking segment, where income grew 42 percent to $703 million, compared to $496 million in the prior year. The company said a 60 percent increase in total loan production pushed volume to $147 billion.


Countrywide lowered the upper range of its full-year earnings projections to between $3.85 to $4.40 per share from previous guidance of between $3.85 and $4.60 per share. Wall Street had forecast full-year profit of $4.13 per share.


Shares of Countrywide rose 0.9 percent to $30.57 on Thursday.

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