MI Firms Continue to Rally

Mortgage-related stocks participated in Tuesday's big rally on Wall Street, with mortgage insurers staging the largest gains.With the Dow Jones industrial average rising 320 points, or 2.5%, 15 of 16 industry stocks routinely tracked by MortgageWire were up on the day, with most posting gains larger than the broader market. Mortgage insurers Triad Guaranty, Radian Group, and PMI Group all had double-digit gains. Triad led the bunch, with shares rising by $2.14, or 30%, to close at $9.27. Government-sponsored enterprise Freddie Mac also posted a double-digit gain, rising 11%, or $4.56, to close at $44.56. Fannie Mae's shares were up by 4.6%, or $2.14, with a closing price of $49.20. Homebuilders such as KBH, which was up 4.8% to close at $26.60, also benefited on a day when the market responded positively to news that the National Association of Realtors saw a slight increase (see item above) in its forecast for near-term home sales. The Dow had risen another 40 points or so as of shortly after 1 p.m. Wednesday.