Mat Ishbia tells UWM employees he embraces the noise around company’s stock struggles

Phoenix Suns owner Mat Ishbia told his United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM) employees the company is in the best place it’s ever been despite a tumbling stock price and a report that a housing market miscalculation left the company in a significant hole.

UWM recently suffered a loss of just over $600 million and said it was related to a failed acquisition of Two Harbors Investment Corp., which Two Harbors has disputed.

The mortgage company has since filed a lawsuit against Two Harbors and does not mention the $600 million loss, instead alleging breach of contract and fraud. Two Harbors has argued UWM’s plummeting stock price was among the biggest reasons its shareholders did not trust UWM during a recently attempted merger.

Ishbia told his clients and sales team in a weekly meeting he shared to LinkedIn that he embraces the noise around the company because it means UWM is at the top of its industry.

“Anyone see the thing about the 18th-biggest lender last week and what happened to them? Nobody gives a (expletive). They only care about the No. 1 guy,” Ishbia said.

“You know who else has doubled in the last five years? UWM. You think anybody likes that? Nobody likes that,” he continued. “Just realize that people will love to take shots at us, and so stock price goes down, let’s take some shots.”

UWM’s stock price reached its all-time low of $1.20 last week, well below its 2026 peak of $6.10 on Jan. 16.

The price was $11.35 when it went public on Jan. 22, 2021, three weeks after its all-time peak of $13.13. Its peak during Ishbia’s Suns ownership was $9.52 in August 2024.

Ishbia said he was told early on in the stock process by an undisclosed business owner further along than him that the stock price and the company’s status are only loosely intertwined and that he shouldn’t get caught up in the fluctuations.

“The problem is if in three years or four years, we have a bad month or bad quarter or bad year … and they don’t talk about us, that’s when I’m scared ’cause that means we aren’t relevant,” Ishbia said. “We are the most relevant mortgage partners … in America, and everyone wants us to fail. The best part is, they ain’t gonna get what they want. We’re gonna keep dominating every day.”

Related

Suns reportedly waive wing Haywood Highsmith, opening roster spotSuns likely to face Warriors in regular-season home openerLakers sell for record-breaking $12.5 billion to Josh Kushner, former Disney CEO Bob IgerSuns to begin NBA Cup group play against Nuggets, finish vs. MavericksDon Nelson, second-winningest NBA coach who won 5 titles as a Celtics player, dies at 86Dillon Brooks officially signs extension with Suns, becoming long-term piece