Monday saw gains for most of the companies on the HW 30, with Ellie Mae (Elli) as the biggest winner with a gain of 3.57% for the day.
The housing and mortgage finance stock index edged up overall, growing 0.43% after a positive jobs report on Friday. Yet, a sense of uncertainty lingers in the housing market. Three presidents of the nation's Federal Reserve banks indicated that an initial tapering of the Fed's mortgage-backed securities purchases and Treasurys could very well occur in the coming months, thanks to positive jobs data.
Other companies with more than 3% gains were Redwood Trust (RWT) with a 3.23% jump and lender Impac Mortgage (IMH) with 3.08%.
Impac, which has lost 65.45% for the year, continues to hover around the $5 per share mark, ending the day at $5.20.
Nine companies lost ground Monday, with the biggest changes for Move (MOVE), sliding 4.27%, and CoreLogic, dipping 2.15%.
MGIC Investment Corp. (MGIC) continued its climb over last year with a 2.24% gain on the day, 333.67% for the year.
Stocks in the week ahead are likely to feel the impact of several housing market developments.
For starters, the Senate is expected to vote on whether Rep. Mel Watt, D-N.C., will takeover as director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency. A Watt nomination could impact both servicers and lenders, with the congressman already showing an interest in more aggressive housing policies, including principal writedowns or an expansion of the government's HARP program.
