Morgan Stanley Mulls Over Getting Mortgage Business In-House
Morgan Stanley MS plans to start handling mortgage business in-house with its third-party provider PHH Corp PHH, which is set to make an exit from the mortgage origination business next year.
According to a Reuters article, sources familiar with the matter stated that Morgan Stanley feels this move will lead to improved customer-service and increased originations.
The company would, however, be only managing the initial steps in mortgage lending. PHH Corp will continue to help Morgan Stanley with the later stages such as mortgage servicing.
Also, Morgan Stanley would be making necessary recruitments for back-office operations as well as underwriting required for performing origination functions.
The executives of Morgan Stanley are of the opinion that in-house handling of originations will result in a smoother process, lending an added advantage to approach wealthy clients with other products and services that the bank has to offer.
Apart from Morgan Stanley, some other banks are adopting steps to build on their mortgage business. Recently, Bank of America Corporation BAC moved away from outsourcing mortgage originations to provide customers with better service. Also, Wells Fargo & Company WFC had acquired mortgage servicing rights worth $51 billion from Seneca Mortgage Investment.
Lately, Morgan Stanley has been taking steps to improve overall performance. It has been restructuring its operations with a view to reduce balance-sheet risks and strengthen the product portfolio. Also, it launched a cost-savings program, remaining on track to achieve $1 billion expense savings by 2017.
Shares of Morgan Stanley have gained 10.3% year to date versus the industry’s decline of nearly 1%.
Currently, the stock carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
New Report: An Investor’s Guide to Cybersecurity
Cyberattacks have become more frequent and destructive than ever. In fact, they’re expected to cause $6 trillion per year in damage by 2020.
The cybersecurity industry is expanding quickly in response to these threats. In fact, a projected $170 billion per year will be spent to protect consumer and corporate assets. Zacks has just released Cybersecurity: An Investor’s Guide to Locking Down Profits which reveals 4 promising investment candidates.
Download the new report now>>
Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
Wells Fargo & Company (WFC) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Bank of America Corporation (BAC) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Morgan Stanley (MS) : Free Stock Analysis Report
PHH Corp (PHH) : Free Stock Analysis Report
To read this article on Zacks.com click here.
Zacks Investment Research
