Asta Funding, Inc. Announces $5.30 Per Share Special Cash Dividend
February 05 2018 - 04:45PM
Asta Funding, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASFI) (“Asta” or the “Company”) today
announced that its Board of Directors passed a resolution declaring
a special cash dividend of $5.30 per common share, payable on
February 28, 2018, to stockholders of record as of February 16,
2018. The aggregate payment will be approximately $35
million.
Asta last paid a cash dividend in 2012. In
the period since then, the Board of Directors elected to retain
cash reserves in the Company in order to finance the Company’s
operations and support growth. As a result of the Board of
Directors’ review of Asta’s current financial condition, the Board
of Directors has determined that the payment of the special
dividend is in the best interests of Asta and its stockholders. The
Board of Directors has no current plans to implement a quarterly
dividend program or pay any other special cash dividend.
"We are pleased to return to our stockholders a
common dividend of $5.30 a share, which represents 74% of its
closing price of $7.20 per share as of February 2, 2018. This
dividend provides an immediate benefit to our stockholders, while
allowing us to remain well positioned for future growth with ample
liquidity for select investment opportunities," said Gary Stern,
Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer.
Mr. Stern continued, "I would like to personally
thank our stockholders for the unwavering support and loyalty they
have shown to the Company over the last several years."
About Asta Funding, Inc.
Asta Funding, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASFI), headquartered
in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, is a diversified financial
services company that assists consumers and serves investors
through the strategic management of three complementary business
segments: Personal Injury Claims, Consumer Debt and Disability
Advocacy. Founded in 1994 as a sub-prime auto lender, Asta now
manages business units that include funding of personal injury
claims through its wholly owned subsidiary, Simia Capital, LLC;
acquiring and managing international distressed consumer
receivables through its wholly owned subsidiary, Palisades
Acquisitions LLC; and benefits advocacy through its wholly owned
subsidiary, GAR Disability Advocates, LLC. For additional
information, please visit our website at
http://www.astafunding.com.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking
Statements
All statements in this news release other than
statements of historical facts, including without limitation,
statements regarding our future financial position, business
strategy, budgets, projected revenues, projected costs, and plans
and objectives of management for future operations, are
forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking
statements generally can be identified by the use of
forward-looking terminology such as "may," "will," "expects,"
"intends," "plans," "projects," "estimates," "anticipates," or
"believes" or the negative thereof, or any variation thereon, or
similar terminology or expressions. We have based these
forward-looking statements on our current expectations and
projections about future events. These forward-looking statements
are not guarantees and are subject to known and unknown risks,
uncertainties and assumptions about us that may cause our actual
results, levels of activity, performance or achievements to be
materially different from any future results, levels of activity,
performance or achievements expressed or implied by such
forward-looking statements. Important factors which could
materially affect our results and our future performance include,
without limitation, our ability to purchase defaulted consumer
receivables at appropriate prices, changes in government
regulations that affect our ability to collect sufficient amounts
on our defaulted consumer receivables, our ability to employ and
retain qualified employees, changes in the credit or capital
markets, changes in interest rates, deterioration in economic
conditions, negative press regarding the debt collection industry
which may have a negative impact on a debtor's willingness to pay
the debt we acquire, and statements of assumption underlying any of
the foregoing, as well as other factors set forth under "Item 1A.
Risk Factors" in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended
September 30, 2016, and other filings with the U.S. Securities and
Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). All subsequent written and oral
forward-looking statements attributable to us, or persons acting on
our behalf, are expressly qualified in their entirety by the
foregoing. Except as required by law, we assume no duty to update
or revise any forward-looking statements.
Investor Contact:
Bruce R. Foster, CFOAsta Funding, Inc.(201)
567-5648
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