Western Asset Mortgage Capital Corporation Announces First Quarter 2019 Results

PASADENA, Calif., May 7, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Western Asset Mortgage Capital Corporation (the "Company" or "WMC") WMC today reported its results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2019.

FIRST QUARTER 2019 FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

  • March 31, 2019 book value per share of $10.70, net of first quarter common dividend of $0.31 per share declared on March 21, 2019.
  • GAAP net income of $27.9 million, or $0.58 per basic and diluted share.
  • Core earnings of $15.5 million, or $0.32 per basic and diluted share.1
  • Economic return on book value was 5.4%1,2 for the quarter.
  • 2.36% annualized net interest margin on our investment portfolio. 1,3,4
  • 5.9x leverage excluding non-recourse debt as of March 31, 2019 (7.5x leverage with non-recourse debt).

OTHER FIRST QUARTER 2019 HIGHLIGHTS

  • Acquired $459.9 million of investments, consisting of:
    • $249.2 million in Residential Whole Loans
    • $121.2 million in Commercial Loans
    • $65.3 million in Non-Agency CMBS
    • $24.2 million in Agency CMBS
  • Obtained two new financing facilities, consisting of:
    • $150 million commercial whole loan financing facility
    • $700 million residential whole loan financing facility

 



1

Non – GAAP measure.

2

Economic return is calculated by taking the sum of: (i) the total dividends declared; and (ii) the change in book value during the period and dividing by the beginning book value.

3

Includes interest-only securities accounted for as derivatives and the cost of interest rate swaps.

4

Excludes the consolidation of VIE trusts required under GAAP.

MANAGEMENT COMMENTARY

"I am very pleased to report that we delivered an economic return on book value was 5.4% during the first quarter, driven by core earnings of $0.32 per share and an increase in our book value of 2.4%," said Jennifer Murphy, Chief Executive Officer of the Company. "Our solid performance for the quarter is the result of the strength of our diversified portfolio and differentiated investment strategy and reflects our focus on generating consistent and sustainable core earnings that will support an attractive dividend, while maintaining the stability of the Company's book value. Our dividend has remained consistent at $0.31 per share for twelve consecutive quarters."

Sean Johnson, Deputy Chief Investment Officer of the Company, commented, "Our strong core earnings and positive performance for the first quarter of 2019 were driven by contributions across our diverse holdings in a number of subsectors of the mortgage market and reflect our  efforts to increase our exposure to credit sensitive investments while also complementing these holdings with exposure to Agency CMBS. During the quarter, we acquired $460 million of target assets, including $436 million of credit sensitive investments, consisting primarily of Residential Whole and Commercial Whole Loans and Non-Agency CMBS, areas where we continue to see opportunities to achieve attractive risk-adjusted returns.

"Our current expectations are for continued, yet moderate, U.S. economic growth along with subdued inflation expectations and a more neutral Federal Reserve monetary policy. We believe that credit spread sectors will continue to perform well again in 2019 and we will continue to focus primarily on residential and commercial whole loans. We also believe that our Agency CMBS holdings provide a good balance to our credit-sensitive assets and have a convexity profile that is cost efficient to hedge. We remain constructive on both residential and commercial real estate. The U.S. housing market is entering a more normalized phase as home price appreciation is expected to remain modest. Commercial real estate fundamentals generally continue to be positive, driven by an ongoing economic expansion and job growth. As such, we believe that our strategy of holding a diverse investment portfolio, with our focus on risk management, positions us well to continue generating strong core earnings while preserving our book value, with the overriding goal of providing our shareholders favorable risk-adjusted returns," concluded Mr. Johnson.

OPERATING RESULTS

The below table reflects a summary of our operating results:





For the Three Months Ended

GAAP Results



March 31, 2019



December 31, 2018











Net Interest Income



$

15,633





$

17,128



Other Income (Loss):









Realized gain (loss) on sale of investments, net



(5,105)





(33,995)



Other than temporary impairment



(1,232)





(2,757)



Unrealized gain (loss), net



50,781





62,855



Gain (loss) on derivative instruments, net



(27,148)





(54,728)



Other, net



236





(89)



Other Income (loss)



17,532





(28,714)



Total Expenses



5,277





5,915



Income (loss) before income taxes



27,888





(17,501)



Income tax provision (benefit)



12





154



Net income (loss)



$

27,876





$

(17,655)













Net income (loss) per Common Share – Basic/Diluted



$

0.58





$

(0.37)



Non-GAAP Results









Core earnings (1)



$

15,492





$

16,222



Core earnings per Common Share – Basic/Diluted



$

0.32





$

0.34



Weighted average yield(2)(4)



5.17

%



4.71

%

Effective cost of funds(3)(4)



3.25

%



2.84

%

Annualized net interest margin(2)(3)(4)



2.36

%



2.25

%



(1)

For a reconciliation of GAAP Income to Core earnings, please refer to the Reconciliation of Core Earnings at the end of this press release.

(2)

Includes interest-only securities accounted for as derivatives.

(3)

Includes the net amount paid, including accrued amounts for interest rate swaps and premium amortization for MAC interest rate swaps during the periods.

(4)

Excludes the consolidation of VIE trusts required under GAAP.

Portfolio Composition

As of March 31, 2019, the Company owned an aggregate investment portfolio with a fair market value totaling $4.3 billion. The following tables sets forth additional information regarding the Company's investment portfolio as of March 31, 2019:

Portfolio Characteristics

Agency Portfolio

The following table summarizes certain characteristics of our Agency portfolio by investment category as of March 31, 2019 (dollars in thousands):



Principal Balance



Amortized Cost



Fair Value



Net Weighted

Average Coupon

Agency CMBS

1,306,099





$

1,311,858





$

1,343,149





3.3

%

Agency CMBS Interest-Only Strips, accounted for as derivatives

N/A





N/A





$

3,908





0.4

%

Total Agency CMBS

1,306,099





$

1,311,858





$

1,347,057





3.0

%

















Agency RMBS Interest-Only Strips

N/A





$

10,801





$

11,811





2.3

%

Agency RMBS Interest-Only Strips, accounted for as derivatives

N/A





N/A





7,297





2.8

%

Total Agency RMBS

N/A





10,801





19,108





2.5

%

















Total

$

1,306,099





$

1,322,659





$

1,366,165





2.9

%































Credit Sensitive Portfolio

The following table summarizes certain characteristics of our credit sensitive  portfolio by investment category as of March 31, 2019 (dollars in thousands):



Principal Balance



Amortized Cost



Fair Value



 Weighted Average

 Coupon(1)

Non-Agency RMBS

$

54,465





$

37,826





$

38,179





4.8

%

Non-Agency RMBS IOs and IIOs

N/A





10,423





10,213





0.6

%

Non-Agency CMBS

211,344





173,774





172,724





6.0

%

Residential Whole Loans

1,238,461





1,257,398





1,267,163





5.2

%

Residential Bridge Loans(2)

153,867





154,235





152,205





9.1

%

Securitized Commercial Loans(1)

924,352





928,110





929,474





4.9

%

Commercial Loans

337,866





336,724





337,578





7.9

%

Other Securities

46,800





53,475





58,779





8.1

%



$

2,967,155





$

2,951,965





$

2,966,315





4.6

%



(1)

In March 2019, the Company acquired $65.3 million of  Non-Agency CMBS securities which resulted in the consolidation of a variable interest entity and the recording of a $904 million securitized commercial loan and $904 million of securitized debt. As of March 31, 2019, the fair value of the securitized loan was $905.1 million and the fair value securitized debt was $905.1 million.

(2)

Includes Residential Bridge Loans carried at amortized cost  of $7.9 million as of March 31, 2019. The fair value of these loans was $7.7 million as of March 31, 2019.

PORTFOLIO FINANCING AND HEDGING

Financing Activity

Repurchase Agreements

At March 31, 2019, the Company had $2.9 billion of borrowings under 17 of its 32 master repurchase agreements with varying maturities. The following table sets forth additional information regarding the Company's portfolio financing under the master repurchase agreements, which includes our $700 million residential whole loan and $150 million commercial whole loan financing facilities, as of March 31, 2019 (dollars in thousands):

Short Term Borrowings



Outstanding

Borrowings



Weighted Average

Interest Rate



Weighted Average

Remaining Days to

Maturity

Agency RMBS



$

14,008





3.21

%



26

Agency CMBS



1,230,053





2.70

%



48

Non-Agency RMBS



30,954





4.12

%



16

Non-Agency CMBS



108,417





4.11

%



44

Residential Whole-Loans



435,653





3.90

%



113

Residential Bridge Loans



139,992





4.77

%



26

Commercial Loans



137,822





4.84

%



33

Securitized Commercial Loan



24,513





3.68

%



21

Other Securities



37,127





4.31

%



26

Subtotal



2,158,539





3.35

%



57

Long Term Borrowings













Residential Whole-Loans (1)



692,963





4.24

%



785

Commercial Loans (1)



65,099





5.02

%



500

Subtotal



758,062





4.31

%



761















Total



$

2,916,601





3.60

%



240



(1)

Certain Residential Whole Loans and Commercial Loans were financed under two new longer term financing facilities. These facilities automatically roll until such time as they are  terminated  or until certain conditions of default. The weighted average remaining maturity days was calculated using expected weighted life of the underlying collateral.

Convertible Senior Unsecured Notes

At March 31, 2019, the Company had $115.0 million aggregate principal amount of 6.75% convertible senior unsecured notes. The notes mature on October 1, 2022, unless earlier converted, redeemed or repurchased by the holders pursuant to their terms, and are not redeemable by the Company except during the final three months prior to maturity. The initial conversion rate was 83.1947 shares of common stock per $1,000 principal amount of notes and represented a conversion price of $12.02 per share of common stock.

Hedging Activity

At March 31, 2019, the Company had $2.9 billion notional value of pay-fixed interest rate swaps which have variable maturities between June 14, 2019 and April 27, 2037. The following tables summarize the average fixed pay rate, average floating receive rate and average maturity for the Company's fixed pay interest rate swaps as of March 31, 2019 (dollars in thousands):

Remaining Interest Rate Swap Term



Notional

Value



Average

Fixed Pay

Rate



Average

Floating

Receive

Rate



Average

Maturity

(Years)

1 year or less



$

400,000





1.5

%



2.6

%



0.3

Greater than 1 year and less than 3 years



200,000





1.8

%



2.7

%



1.2

Greater than 3 years and less than 5 years



924,700





2.2

%



2.8

%



3.4

Greater than 5 years



1,420,900





2.5

%



2.8

%



9.7

Total



$

2,945,600





2.2

%



2.7

%



5.8

The following table summarizes the average variable pay rate, average fixed receive rate and average maturity for the Company's variable pay interest rate swaps as of March 31, 2019 (dollars in thousands):

Remaining Interest Rate Swap Term



Notional

Amount



Average

Variable Pay

Rate



Average

Fixed

Receive

Rate



Average

Maturity

(Years)

Greater than 5 years



$

728,400





2.8

%



2.4

%



8.1

Total



$

728,400





2.8

%



2.4

%



8.1

DIVIDEND

On March 21, 2019, the Company declared a regular cash dividend of $0.31 per share for each common share. Since its inception in May 2012, the Company has declared and paid total dividends of $16.85 per share in a combination of cash and stock.

CONFERENCE CALL

The Company will host a conference call with a live webcast tomorrow, May 8th, at 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time/8:00 a.m. Pacific Time, to discuss financial results for the first quarter 2019.

Individuals interested in participating in the conference call may do so by dialing (866) 235-9914 from the United States, or (412) 902-4115 from outside the United States and referencing "Western Asset Mortgage Capital Corporation." Those interested in listening to the conference call live via the Internet may do so by visiting the Investor Relations section of the Company's website at www.westernassetmcc.com.

The Company is enabling investors to pre-register for the earnings conference call so that they can expedite their entry into the call and avoid the need to wait for a live operator. In order to pre-register for the call, investors can visit http://dpregister.com/10130967 and enter in their contact information. Investors will then be issued a personalized phone number and pin to dial into the live conference call. Individuals can pre-register any time prior to the start of the conference call tomorrow.

A telephone replay will be available through May 22, 2019 by dialing (877) 344-7529 from the United States, or (412) 317-0088 from outside the United States, and entering conference ID 10130967. A webcast replay will be available for 90 days.

ABOUT WESTERN ASSET MORTGAGE CAPITAL CORPORATION

Western Asset Mortgage Capital Corporation is a real estate investment trust that invests in, acquires and manages a diverse portfolio assets consisting of Agency CMBS, Agency RMBS, Non-Agency RMBS, Non-Agency CMBS, ABS, GSE Risk Transfer Securities, Residential Whole and Bridge Loans and Commercial Loans. The Company's investment strategy may change, subject to the Company's stated investment guidelines, and is based on its manager Western Asset Management Company, LLC's perspective of which mix of portfolio assets it believes provide the Company with the best risk-reward opportunities at any given time. The Company is externally managed and advised by Western Asset Management Company, LLC, an investment advisor registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Legg Mason, Inc. Please visit the Company's website at www.westernassetmcc.com.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This press release contains statements that constitute "forward-looking statements."  Operating results are subject to numerous conditions, many of which are beyond the control of the Company, including, without limitation, changes in interest rates; changes in the yield curve; changes in prepayment rates; the availability and terms of financing; general economic conditions; market conditions; conditions in the market for mortgage related investments; legislative and regulatory changes that could adversely affect the business of the Company; and other factors, including those set forth in the Risk Factors section of the Company's annual report on Form 10-K for the period ended December 31, 2018 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"). The Company undertakes no obligation to update these statements for revisions or changes after the date of this release, except as required by law.

USE OF NON-GAAP FINANCIAL INFORMATION

In addition to the results presented in accordance with GAAP, this release includes certain non-GAAP financial information, including core earnings, core earnings per share, drop income and drop income per share and certain financial metrics derived from non-GAAP information, such as weighted average yield, including IO securities; weighted average effective cost of financing, including swaps; weighted average net interest margin, including IO securities and swaps, which constitute non-GAAP financial measures within the meaning of Regulation G promulgated by the SEC. We believe that these measures presented in this release, when considered together with GAAP financial measures, provide information that is useful to investors in understanding our borrowing costs and net interest income, as viewed by us.  An analysis of any non-GAAP financial measure should be made in conjunction with results presented in accordance with GAAP.

-Financial Tables to Follow-

Western Asset Mortgage Capital Corporation and Subsidiaries

Consolidated Balance Sheets

(in thousands—except share and per share data)

(Unaudited)







March 31, 2019



December 31, 2018

Assets:









Cash and cash equivalents



$

19,558





$

21,987



Restricted cash



71,178





55,808



Agency mortgage-backed securities, at fair value ($1,341,763 and $1,505,979 pledged as collateral, at fair value, respectively)



1,366,165





1,505,979



Non-Agency mortgage-backed securities, at fair value ($192,079 and $237,107 pledged as collateral, at fair value, respectively)



221,116





250,856



Other securities, at fair value ($58,653 and $59,780 pledged as collateral, at fair value, respectively)



58,779





59,906



Residential Whole Loans, at fair value ($1,267,163 and $1,041,885 pledged as collateral, at fair value, respectively)



1,267,163





1,041,885



Residential Bridge Loans ($144,170 and $211,999 at fair value and $151,228 and $221,486 pledged as collateral, respectively)



152,205





221,719



Securitized commercial loan, at fair value



929,474





1,013,511



Commercial Loans, at fair value ($317,744 and $196,123 pledged as collateral, at fair value, respectively)



337,578





216,123



Investment related receivable



32,559





42,945



Interest receivable



20,664





21,959



Due from counterparties



38,021





39,623



Derivative assets, at fair value



5,826





2,606



Other assets



1,269





2,488



Total Assets (1)



$

4,521,555





$

4,497,395













Liabilities and Stockholders' Equity:









Liabilities:









Repurchase agreements, net



$

2,916,601





$

2,818,837



Convertible senior unsecured notes, net



110,389





110,060



Securitized debt, at fair value (includes $94,638 and $246,802 held by affiliates, respectively)



850,448





949,626



Interest payable (includes $128 and $816 on securitized debt held by affiliates, respectively)



10,320





8,532



Due to counterparties



21,357





17,781



Derivative liability, at fair value



1,996





10,130



Accounts payable and accrued expenses



4,040





3,858



Payable to affiliate



4,214





4,615



Dividend payable



14,950





14,916



  Other liabilities



71,234





56,031



Total Liabilities (2)



$

4,005,549





$

3,994,386













Commitments and contingencies



















Stockholders' Equity:









Common stock: $0.01 par value, 500,000,000 shares authorized, 48,224,379 and 48,116,379 outstanding, respectively



482





481



Preferred stock, $0.01 par value, 100,000,000 shares authorized and no shares outstanding









Additional paid-in capital



833,915





833,810



Retained earnings (accumulated deficit)



(318,391)





(331,282)



Total Stockholders' Equity



516,006





503,009



Total Liabilities and Stockholders' Equity



$

4,521,555





$

4,497,395



 

Western Asset Mortgage Capital Corporation and Subsidiaries

Consolidated Balance Sheets (Continued)

(in thousands—except share and per share data)

(Unaudited)







March 31, 2019



December 31, 2018

(1) Assets of consolidated VIEs included in the total assets above:









Cash and cash equivalents



$

3,509





$

674



Restricted Cash



71,178





55,808



Residential Whole Loans, at fair value ($1,267,163 and $1,041,885 pledged as collateral, at fair value, respectively)



1,267,163





1,041,885



Residential Bridge Loans ($143,352 and $211,766 at fair value and $151,228 and $221,486 pledged as collateral, respectively)



151,228





221,486



Securitized commercial loan, at fair value



929,474





1,013,511



Commercial Loans, at fair value ($317,744 and $196,123 pledged as collateral, at fair value, respectively)



211,744





196,123



Investment related receivable



32,441





42,945



Interest receivable



14,292





15,540



Other assets



155





178



Total assets of consolidated VIEs



$

2,681,184





$

2,588,150













(2) Liabilities of consolidated VIEs included in the total liabilities above:









Securitized debt, at fair value (includes $94,638 and $246,802 held by affiliates, respectively)



$

850,448





$

949,626



Interest payable (includes $128 and $816 on securitized debt held by affiliates, respectively)



378





2,419



Accounts payable and accrued expenses



633





708



Other liabilities



71,234





56,033



Total liabilities of consolidated VIEs



$

922,693





$

1,008,786



 

Western Asset Mortgage Capital Corporation and Subsidiaries

Consolidated Statements of Operations

(in thousands—except share and per share data)

 (Unaudited)







Three months ended





March 31, 2019



December 31, 2018

Net Interest Income









Interest income



$

52,033





$

58,020



Interest expense (includes $2,338 and $488 on securitized debt held by affiliates, respectively)



36,400





40,892



Net Interest Income



15,633





17,128













Other Income (Loss)









Realized gain (loss) on sale of investments, net



(5,105)





(33,995)



Other than temporary impairment



(1,232)





(2,757)



Unrealized gain (loss), net



50,781





62,855



Gain (loss) on derivative instruments, net



(27,148)





(54,728)



Other, net



236





(89)



Other Income (Loss)



17,532





(28,714)













Expenses









Management fee to affiliate



1,735





1,950



Other operating expenses



1,598





1,943



General and administrative expenses:









  Compensation expense



544





552



  Professional fees



1,215





1,121



  Other general and administrative expenses



185





349



Total general and administrative expenses



1,944





2,022



Total Expenses



5,277





5,915













Income before income taxes



27,888





(17,501)



Income tax provision (benefit)



12





154



Net income (loss)



$

27,876





$

(17,655)













Net income (loss) per Common Share – Basic



$

0.58





$

(0.37)



Net income (loss) per Common Share – Diluted



$

0.58





$

(0.37)



Reconciliation of GAAP Net Income to Non-GAAP Core Earnings

(in thousands—except share and per share data)

(Unaudited)

The table below reconciles Net Income to Core Earnings for the three months ended March 31, 2019 and December 31, 2018:





Three months ended

(dollars in thousands)



March 31, 2019



December 31, 2018

Net Income (loss)



$

27,876





$

(17,655)



Income tax provision (benefit)



12





154



Net Income before income taxes



27,888





(17,501)













Adjustments:









Investments:









Unrealized (gain) loss on investments, securitized debt and other liabilities



(50,781)





(62,855)



Other than temporary impairment



1,232





2,757



Realized (gain) loss on sale of investments



5,105





33,995



One-time transaction costs



269





298













Derivative Instruments:









Net realized (gain) loss on derivatives



42,885





50,126



Unrealized (gain) loss on derivatives



(11,313)





8,921













Amortization of discount on convertible senior unsecured notes



137





138



Non-cash stock-based compensation



70





70



Total adjustments



(12,396)





33,450



Core Earnings



$

15,492





$

15,949



Basic and Diluted Core Earnings per Common Share and Participating Securities



$

0.32





$

0.33



Basic and Diluted Core Earnings plus Drop Income per Common Share and Participating Securities



$

0.32





$

0.34



Basic weighted average common shares and participating securities



48,236,647





48,228,236



Diluted weighted average common shares and participating securities



48,236,647





48,228,236



Reconciliation of Interest Income and Effective Cost of Funds

(dollars in thousands)

(Unaudited)

The following table reconciles total interest income to  adjusted interest income which includes interest income on Agency and Non-Agency Interest-Only Strips classified as derivatives (Non-GAAP financial measure) for the three months ended March 31, 2019 and December 31, 2018:





Three months ended

(dollars in thousands)



March 31, 2019



December 31, 2018

Coupon interest income



$

54,771





$

62,225



Premium amortization, discount accretion and amortization of basis, net



(2,738)





(4,205)



Interest income



52,033





58,020



Contractual interest income, net of amortization of basis on Agency and Non-Agency Interest-Only Strips, classified as derivatives(1):









Coupon interest income



784





869



Amortization of basis



(595)





(691)



Subtotal



189





178



Total adjusted interest income



$

52,222





$

58,198







(1)

Reported in "Gain (loss) on derivative instruments, net" in the Consolidated Statements of Operations.

The following table reconciles the Effective Cost of Funds (Non-GAAP financial measure) with interest expense for three months ended March 31, 2019 and December 31, 2018:





Three months ended





March 31, 2019



December 31, 2018

 (dollars in thousands)



Reconciliation



Cost of

Funds/Effective

Borrowing

Costs



Reconciliation



Cost of

Funds/Effective

Borrowing

Costs

Interest expense



$

36,400





3.94

%



$

40,892





3.76

%

Adjustments:

















Interest expense on Securitized debt from consolidated VIEs



(9,157)





(4.22)

%



(13,065)





(5.17)

%

Net interest (received) paid - interest rate swaps



(4,283)





(0.46)

%



(4,208)





(0.39)

%

Effective Borrowing Costs



$

22,960





3.25

%



$

23,619





2.84

%

Weighted average borrowings



$

2,868,327









$

3,304,271







 

Cision View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/western-asset-mortgage-capital-corporation-announces-first-quarter-2019-results-300845680.html

SOURCE Western Asset Mortgage Capital Corporation

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