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	Great Ajax Corp	3.59	0.02	0.56%
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Great Ajax Corp. Announces Results for the Quarter Ended December 31, 2023

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  Interest income of $17.7 million; net interest income of $3.2 million
  
  


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  Net loss attributable to common stockholders of $(23.2) million
  
  


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  Operating loss of $(1.8) million
  
  


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  Earnings per share ("EPS") per basic common share was a loss of $(0.86)
  
  


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  Operating loss per basic common share of $(0.07)
  
  


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  Taxable loss of $0.03 per share attributable to common stockholders after payment of dividends on our preferred stock
  
  


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  Book value per common share of $9.99 at December 31, 2023
  
  


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  Collected total cash of $30.4 million from loan payments, sales of real estate owned ("REO") properties and collections from investments in debt securities and beneficial interests
  
  


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  Held $52.8 million of cash and cash equivalents at December 31, 2023; average daily cash balance for the quarter was $55.2 million
  
  


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  As of December 31, 2023, approximately 80.4% of our portfolio (based on unpaid principal balance ("UPB") at the time of acquisition) made at least 12 out of the last 12 payments
  
  

For the quarter ended December 31, 2023, we had a GAAP consolidated net loss attributable to common stockholders of $(23.2) million or $(0.86) per common share after preferred dividends. Operating loss, a non-GAAP financial measure that adjusts GAAP earnings by removing gains and losses as well as certain other non-core income and expenses and preferred dividends, was $(1.8) million or $(0.07) per common share. We consider Operating loss/income to provide a useful measure for comparing the results of our ongoing operations over multiple quarters. For a reconciliation of Operating loss to consolidated net loss available to common stockholders, please refer to Appendix B.

Our net interest income for the quarter ended December 31, 2023, excluding any adjustment for expected credit losses was $3.2 million, a decrease of $0.1 million over the prior quarter. Gross interest income decreased $0.2 million as a result of slightly lower average balances on our mortgage, debt security and beneficial interest portfolios. Our interest expense for the quarter ended December 31, 2023 decreased $0.4 million compared to the prior quarter primarily as a result of a decrease in our average balance of interest bearing debt. Interest earning assets declined $32.6 million during the quarter ended December 31, 2023.

We generally acquire loans at a discount and record an allowance for expected credit losses at acquisition. We update the allowance quarterly based on actual cash flow results and changing cash flow expectations in accordance with the current expected credit losses accounting standard, otherwise known as CECL. During the quarter ended December 31, 2023, we recorded $13.7 million write-downs on our beneficial interests offset by a $2.4 million decrease in expected credit losses on our mortgage loan portfolio. We expect to redeem several of our joint ventures during 2024 and adjusted our cash flow projections to reflect lower expected sale prices of the underlying collateral on the expected redemption dates. Based on the revised collateral sales prices, the expected liquidation proceeds on the sale of the underlying loans would not be sufficient to redeem the beneficial interests in full. Because CECL compares projected cash flows to contractual cash flows to determine "credit" losses, the write-down is reflected as a credit loss and not as a mark to market adjustment. The performance of the underlying loans has remain unchanged.

We recorded a $8.6 million mark to market loss, including the repayment of servicer advances, on a $64.3 million portfolio of mortgage loans we designated as held-for-sale. During the quarter ended December 31, 2023, we began to actively market a pool of NPLs. Final bids were received in January 2024 and the loan sale is expected to close in March 2024. Accordingly, we reclassified these loans from held-for-investment to held-for-sale and recorded the mark to market loss equal to the difference between the expected net liquidation proceeds and our carrying value.

Our GAAP expenses decreased on a quarter over quarter basis by $0.4 million primarily due to a $0.3 million decrease in other expense due to lower impairment on our REO, discussed further below. Additionally our amortization of put option liability decreased by $0.1 million as we reached the initial put option liability and are now accruing a non-compounding fixed rate on the outstanding balance.

We recorded $51.0 thousand in impairment on our REO held-for-sale portfolio in other expense for the quarter ended December 31, 2023. We sold 12 properties in the fourth quarter and recorded a net loss of $47 thousand in other income. Seven properties were added to REO held-for-sale through foreclosures.

For the quarter ended March 31, 2023, we transferred certain securities from AFS to HTM in compliance with the European Union risk retention requirement, which was a non-cash transaction and recorded at fair value. On the date of transfer, accumulated other comprehensive income ("AOCI") included unrealized losses of $10.9 million for these securities. This amount is being amortized out of AOCI over the remaining life of the respective securities, and has no net impact on interest income. For the quarter ended December 31, 2023, we recorded $0.8 million in amortization compared to $0.9 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2023.

We ended the quarter with a GAAP book value of $9.99 per common share, compared to a book value per common share of $11.07 for the quarter ended September 30, 2023. The decrease in book value is driven primarily by the GAAP net loss for the period, the increase in the number of our outstanding common share count during the quarter, and dividends paid, partially offset by the recovery of a portion of the mark to market loss in debt securities recorded on the balance sheet through AOCI, and the amortization of the unrealized loss on debt securities transferred to HTM.

Our taxable loss for the quarter ended December 31, 2023 was $0.03 per share of net income available to common stockholders, compared to $(0.06) per share of taxable net income available to common stockholders for the quarter ended September 30, 2023. Additionally, we recorded income tax expense of $0.1 million comprised primarily of local income taxes.

We collected $30.4 million of cash during the fourth quarter as a result of loan payments, loan payoffs, sales of REO, and cash collections on our securities portfolio to end the quarter with $52.8 million in cash and cash equivalents.

As we previously announced on October 20, 2023, we and Ellington Financial Inc. ("Ellington Financial") mutually terminated our merger agreement with Ellington Financial. The termination was approved by both companies' boards of directors after careful consideration of the proposed merger and the progress made towards completing the transaction. In connection with the termination, Ellington Financial paid us $16.0 million, $5.0 million of which was paid in cash, and $11.0 million of which was paid in cash as consideration for approximately 1,666,666 shares of our common stock. The common stock was purchased at $6.60 per share. The purchase price was determined based on the merger exchange ratio. Ellington Financial holds approximately 6.1% of our stock. An affiliate of Ellington Financial's external manager owned 273,983 shares of our common stock or 1.0% as of December 31, 2023. Ellington Financial remains one of our securitization joint venture partners.

The following table provides an overview of our portfolio at December 31, 2023 ($ in thousands)⁽¹⁾:

Recent Events

Our board declared a cash dividend of $0.10 per share to be paid on March 29, 2024 to stockholders of record as of March 15, 2024.

In late February 2024, we identified mortgage loans that we proposed to market for sale. These include loans that are on our repurchase lines of credit, as well as loans included in Ajax Mortgage Loan Trust 2021-B and that in aggregate have a UPB of approximately $330.0 million and a carrying value of approximately $320.0 million. We anticipate that we will record a loss in connection with any loans we ultimately sell; any such loss would likely be recorded and reflected in our March 31, 2024 financial statements. For each $100.0 million of loans sold, we anticipate that we may record a $10.0 million loss. Our decision to market these loans for sale was based on market uncertainty and the upcoming maturity of our convertible notes.

On February 26, 2024, we announced the entry into a strategic transaction with Rithm. We will be moving forward promptly with an annual/special stockholders' meeting as previously disclosed.

About Great Ajax Corp.

Great Ajax Corp. is a Maryland corporation that is a REIT, that focuses primarily on acquiring, investing in and managing RPLs and NPLs secured by single-family residences and commercial properties. In addition to our continued focus on RPLs and NPLs, we also originate and acquire SBC loans secured by multi-family retail/residential and mixed use properties. We are externally managed by Thetis Asset Management LLC, an affiliated entity. Our mortgage loans and other real estate assets are serviced by Gregory Funding LLC, an affiliated entity. We have elected to be taxed as a REIT under the Internal Revenue Code.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements. Words such as "believes," "intends," "expects," "projects," "anticipates," and "future" or similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are subject to the inherent uncertainties in predicting future results and conditions, many of which are beyond our control, including, without limitation and the risk factors and other matters set forth in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the period ended December 31, 2023 when filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"). We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required by law.

Appendix A - Earnings per share

The following table sets forth the components of basic and diluted EPS ($ in thousands, except per share):

Appendix B - Reconciliation of Operating loss to Consolidated net loss available to common stockholders
(Dollars in thousands except per share amounts)

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