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02/29/2016

Radian Announces Updated Pricing for MI Business and Completion of Share Repurchase Program

-- Updated MI pricing provides increased risk-based granularity –

-- Company successfully completes $100 million share repurchase program –

PHILADELPHIA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 29, 2016-- Radian Group Inc. (NYSE:RDN) announced today that its principal mortgage insurance subsidiary, Radian Guaranty Inc., will be updating its premium rates for its mortgage insurance business. The updated rates will provide increased risk-based granularity to the company’s pricing and better align its pricing with the capital requirements under the GSE Private Mortgage Insurer Eligibility Requirements and with industry trends.

Radian’s new borrower-paid monthly rate card, which is available on the company’s website and will become effective in April, subject to regulatory approval, has the following characteristics:

  • Refined credit tiers with the expansion of FICO buckets from four to eight
  • Generally lower rates for the following:

- 740+ FICOs for loan terms greater than 20 years

- 680+ FICOs for loan terms of 20 years and fewer

  • Generally higher rates for loans with FICOs below 740 for loan terms greater than 20 years
  • Eliminated adjustments for loan amounts greater than $417,000 and adjustments for rate/term refinances

“Our top priority at Radian is to write as much new, high-quality mortgage insurance business as possible at an attractive return, and in a manner that is consistent with regulatory requirements,” said Radian Guaranty President Teresa Bryce Bazemore. “We believe that these pricing changes will help us to support our customers and answer the market’s demand for our products, while also positioning us to write even more business.”

OVERVIEW OF RECENT PRICING ACTIONS

As part of its strategy to compete for the high-quality business being originated today, capture a larger share of borrower-paid monthly business and generate a blended return on equity in the mid-teens, Radian has:

  • increased its filed rates for lender-paid mortgage insurance, which will become effective on March 28, 2016, subject to regulatory approval;
  • continued to provide customized rates for lender-paid singles on a selective and negotiated basis, while declining to participate in the significantly discounted aggregated singles business; and
  • as discussed above, updated its borrower-paid monthly rates in order to remain competitive and capture more high-quality borrower-paid monthly business. These rates will become effective on April 7, 2016, subject to regulatory approval.

Applying these combined actions to Radian’s new business production in 2015 would have resulted in a modest increase in its average premium rate.

SHARE REPURCHASE PROGRAM

As of December 31, 2015, Radian Group had approximately $340 million of currently available liquidity. In February, Radian fully completed its previously announced $100 million share repurchase program, purchasing approximately 9.4 million shares of Radian common stock at an average price of $10.62 per share, including commissions. This represents approximately 3.8 percent of the company’s diluted shares outstanding as of December 31, 2015.

“We are pleased that Radian’s improved financial position has positioned us to return value more quickly to stockholders,” stated Radian Chief Executive Office S.A. Ibrahim. “The successful completion of our share repurchase program demonstrates our confidence in the strength of our businesses and our commitment to optimizing stockholder returns.”

ABOUT RADIAN

Radian Group Inc. (NYSE: RDN), headquartered in Philadelphia, provides private mortgage insurance, risk management products and real estate services to financial institutions. Radian offers products and services through two business segments:

  • Mortgage Insurance, through its principal mortgage insurance subsidiary Radian Guaranty Inc. This private mortgage insurance protects lenders from default-related losses, facilitates the sale of low-downpayment mortgages in the secondary market and enables homebuyers to purchase homes more quickly with downpayments less than 20%.
  • Mortgage and Real Estate Services, through its principal services subsidiary Clayton, as well as Green River Capital, Red Bell Real Estate and ValuAmerica. These solutions include information and services that financial institutions, investors and government entities use to evaluate, acquire, securitize, service and monitor loans and asset-backed securities.

Additional information may be found at www.radian.com.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

All statements in this press release that address events, developments or results that we expect or anticipate may occur in the future are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 21E of the Exchange Act and the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. In most cases, forward-looking statements may be identified by words such as "anticipate," "may," "will," "could," "should," "would," "expect," "intend," "plan," "goal," "contemplate," "believe," "estimate," "predict," "project," "potential," "continue," "seek," "strategy," "future," "likely" or the negative or other variations on these words and other similar expressions. These statements, which may include, without limitation, projections regarding our future performance and financial condition, are made on the basis of management's current views and assumptions with respect to future events. Any forward-looking statement is not a guarantee of future performance and actual results could differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statement. These statements speak only as of the date they were made, and we undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. We operate in a changing environment. New risks emerge from time to time and it is not possible for us to predict all risks that may affect us. The forward-looking statements, as well as our prospects as a whole, are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements.

For more information regarding these risks and uncertainties as well as certain additional risks that we face, you should refer to the Risk Factors detailed in Item 1A of Part I of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2015, and subsequent reports and registration statements filed from time to time with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. We caution you not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which are current only as of the date on which we issued this presentation. We do not intend to, and we disclaim any duty or obligation to, update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect new information or future events or for any other reason.

Source: Radian Group Inc.

Radian Group Inc.
Emily Riley, 215-231-1035
emily.riley@radian.com