Due to sustained growth in its data and analytics division, CoreLogic (CLGX) reported net revenue of $364.8 million in the first quarter, up 12% over the same time period last year.
According to CoreLogic, the revenue growth was primarily driven by higher demand for property data, analytics and underwriting solutions, as well as market share gains and the benefits of the acquisition of Marshall & Swift /Boeckh and DataQuick.
CoreLogic stated that its data and analytics revenue grew 19% compared with prior year to $165.6 million, driven principally by gains in insurance, international and core property data, which more than offset the impact of unfavorable foreign currency translation and lower multifamily services revenues.
“CoreLogic is off to an outstanding start in 2015 with strong growth in revenues, operating profits, free cash flow and diluted earnings per share. Importantly, we successfully captured the benefits of an uptick in mortgage market activity while we continued to expand our product offerings, technology and operational capabilities and market share," said Anand Nallathambi, president and chief executive officer of CoreLogic.
“Over the balance of this year, we will continue to focus on expanding our market leadership in underwriting and risk management-related solutions which are powered by our ‘must have’ data, analytics and data-enabled workflow tools and platforms,” Nallathambi continued.
CoreLogic reported that its operating income from continuing operations totaled $49.3 million for the first quarter, compared with $14.8 million for the first quarter of 2014, an increase of 232%.
The massive increase in operating income resulted primarily from higher revenues, “favorable” operating leverage in the company’s mortgage-related underwriting solutions businesses and lower expenses related to the company’s cost efficiency programs, which were partially offset by increased depreciation and amortization associated with the acquisition of Marshall & Swift /Boeckh and DataQuick.
First quarter net income from continuing operations totaled $29.3 million compared with a net loss of $3.2 million in 2014. The $32.5 million year-over-year jump was primarily driven by higher operating income and lower interest costs, which more than offset the impact of increased provisions for income taxes, the company said.
Diluted EPS from continuing operations totaled $0.32 for the first quarter of 2015 compared with a loss of $0.03 in the first quarter of 2014. Adjusted diluted EPS totaled $0.46, up 156% reflecting the positive impacts of revenue growth, margin improvement and share repurchases.
Adjusted EBITDA totaled $100.9 million in first quarter 2015 compared with $65.4 million in first quarter 2014. First quarter 2015 adjusted EBITDA margin was 28%, up from 20% in 2014. The increase in adjusted EBITDA and margins was principally the result of double-digit revenue growth and favorable business mix as well as lower costs resulting from ongoing cost management programs.
“Our strong first-quarter financial performance reflects the continuing shift in our business mix toward scaled platforms that provide unique data-driven insights with high levels of subscription-based revenues,” said Frank Martell, chief operating and financial officer of CoreLogic. “As we move forward, we plan to accelerate our already considerable progress toward becoming a higher-growth, higher-margin firm. To this end, we increased investment in our NextGen technology platform, upsized our cost management and productivity targets to approximately $60 million over the next three years and amended our credit facility to provide additional flexibility to pursue opportunistic growth opportunities and to continue to drive our capital allocation priorities.”
In the fourth quarter, CoreLogic reported revenue of $345.5 million, an increase of 5% over 2013’s fourth quarter. The total was up over last year, but not up on the previous quarter, when the company reported revenue of $367.5 million.
CoreLogic’s fourth quarter was also down slightly from the company’s performance in the second quarter, when the company reported $349.4 million in revenue.
