Bob Marcotte
Analyst · Ladenburg. Please proceed
Good morning and thank you all for dialing in this morning. I’ll cover some of the highlights for last quarter and some comments on the outlook for the balance of 2023 before turning the call over to Nicole Schaltenbrand, our CFO, to review the details of our financial results for the period. So, beginning with our last quarter results, originations were $71 million for the period, with 3 new platform investments representing the majority of these new investments. Portfolio, amortization and repayments were $35 million, so our ending investment balance rose by $36 million. Higher short-term interest rates lifted the weighted average yield on our portfolio by 50 basis points to 13.6%. However, the 6.6% increase in average earning assets was the primary driver behind the 11.4% increase in total interest income, which rose to $21.8 million. Borrowing cost increased by $700,000 with higher SOFR rates and bank borrowings. However, our net interest margin rose by $1.6 million to $15.9 million for the quarter. Net management fees for the period declined to $4.1 million, or 2.3% of assets, as deal closing and advisory fee credits more than offset the higher incentive fees associated with the increase in investment yields. Our net investment income increased to $11.7 million for the quarter, or $0.31 per share, which is up 21% from last quarter and 68% from the same period last year. The net realized and unrealized gain on the portfolio for the period came in at $200,000 positive. However, undistributed earnings for the quarter lifted NAV per share by $0.08 to $9.27. Combination of increased net interest income and lower net expenses lifted our ROE for the quarter to 13.3%. Based on the portfolio performance and increase in net interest income, we recently announced the monthly dividend increase to $0.0825 per month. With respect to the overall portfolio. Our portfolio continues to perform well with generally modest leverage metrics, favorable liquidity profile and we ended the quarter with only one non-earning debt investment representing $6.1 million at cost or 0.4% of assets at fair value. The appreciation for the quarter of $200,000 was primarily related to offsetting moves in several equity co-investment positions as net depreciation on the debt investment portfolio was nominal. The appreciation for the period included a realized gain of $3.7 million on the exit of our equity interest in PIC 360, which was the legacy investment and capped a very successful outcome. In reflecting on our outlook for the balance of 2023, I’d like to leave you with a couple of comments. While the broader market deal flow moderated, we’re continuing to see attractive investment opportunities within the lower middle market, including follow on investments within our existing portfolio and expect these opportunities to outpace repayments and support further growth of our investment portfolio. We have maintained our underwriting rigor in the face of interest rate escalation and continue to focus our investment activity on lower risk senior secured loans, which make up about 74% of our investments today. And with a weighted average overall leverage in the portfolio of 3.5 times EBITDA, it has helped mitigate the potential debt service issues associated with and yield erosion associated with non-earning assets. We continue to actively manage our balance sheet leverage within our modest leverage target range and market conditions permitting plan to continue to issue equity under our ATM program to support the growth of our investment portfolio. Lastly, with our floating rate investments exceeding our floating rate assets by approximately $450 million and the current floating rates on pace to be up again this quarter, we would expect our net interest income to rise further in the coming quarter. And now, I’d like to turn this call over to Nicole Schaltenbrand to provide more details on the fund’s financial results for the quarter.