Sterne Agee Neutral on Lender Processing Services

Sterne Agee is out with a research report on Lender Processing Services Inc. LPS and it has a Neutral rating on shares. In a note to clients, Sterne Agee writes, "Consistent with our earnings preview, LPS beat consensus expectations based on higher refi volumes. With this strength likely to persist into 4Q, the company's 4Q guidance was also ahead of consensus expectations. While the upside in refi-related revenue was encouraging, LPS's foreclosure related revenue was a bit below our expectations. We think foreclosure activity will need to pick up for the company to hit our 2012 expectations. Heading into the 8am EST conference call on Wednesday, Oct 26, we are slightly raising our 2011 EPS estimate while maintaining our 2012 EPS estimate." Shares of LPS closed at $16.84 yesterday.