Fidelity National Profitable in Quarter

Helped by the strong performance in its title insurance operations, Fidelity National Financial Inc., Jacksonville, Fla., had net earnings of $91.9 million ($0.40 per share), an improvement on the $6.9 million ($0.03 per share) reported one year prior. Pre-tax earnings at Fidelity National Title Group went from just $5.1 million in second quarter 2008 to $133.3 million one year later. Total title premiums went from $745 million in the second quarter 2008 up to $1.0 billion one year later. For the full quarter, William P. Foley II, chairman said, FNT had a pre-tax title margin of 9.2% for the quarter and over 10% for the month of June alone. Furthermore, it completed the integration of the former LandAmerica units, giving the company an additional $32 million in cost synergies on top of the $231 million previously realized. Mr. Foley added that order counts for July have been consistent with the levels the company saw for most of June and thus put FNF in a position to continue to generate "solid profitability."