Title insurer LandAmerica Financial Group Inc. announced Tuesday $35.6 million in second-quarter profits, up 18 percent over the same quarter last year. The company said the increase was partially attributable to the $21.3 million spent or set aside in the same quarter last year to settle legal claims related to captive reinsurance practices.
Earnings per share were $2.06, compared with $1.70 in the second quarter of 2005. LandAmerica spent $12.5 million during the quarter to repurchase 189,000 shares of its common stock at an average price of $66.08 per share. The company said it could buy up to 812,000 additional shares in an ongoing repurchase program.
Operating revenue for title operations was $822 million, a 2.4 percent increase over the second quarter of 2006, even as direct orders for the quarter fell to 271,200, down from 342,700 in 2005. Revenue per closed order was $2,019 in the quarter, compared with $1,593 during the same period in 2005.
“Even as the residential housing market softens, we are pleased that our operating revenue increased compared to last year,” said President and Chief Executive Officer Theodore L. Chandler Jr. Chandler said the company’s national market share improved by .4 percent, reaching 18.6 percent in the first quarter of 2006.
LandAmerica closed at $63.40 Tuesday.
