Asta Funding, Inc. (NASDAQ: ASFI) The Company previously disclosed
that on January 11, 2018, the Board of Directors (the “Board”) of
the Company, upon the recommendation of the Audit Committee of the
Board, determined that the Company’s previously issued financial
statements for each of the years ended September 30, 2016, 2015 and
2014 and the interim periods contained therein, as well as the
Company’s unaudited consolidated financial statements for the
quarters ended December 31, 2016, March 31, 2017 and June 30, 2017
(collectively, the “Non-Reliance Periods”) could no longer be
relied upon. Therefore, all earnings press releases and similar
prior communications issued by the Company, as well as other prior
statements made by or on behalf of the Company relating to those
periods should not be relied upon.
The Board’s decision to restate the financial
statements for the Non-Reliance Periods arose from the Company’s
re-evaluation of its historical conclusion to consolidate Pegasus
Funding, LLC (“Pegasus”). Management determined in January 2018
that it lacked the control required to consolidate Pegasus in the
historical periods specified above. As such, for all periods prior
to January 13, 2018, when the Company acquired the interests in
Pegasus that it did not already own, the Company should have
reported its investment in Pegasus under the equity method of
accounting in accordance with accounting principles generally
accepted in the United States (“US GAAP”). The change to the
equity method of accounting for the Company's investment in Pegasus
does not affect the Company's net income or loss during the
Non-Reliance Periods. The change in presentation, however, as
a result of de-consolidating Pegasus in the Non-Reliance Periods,
does affect the revenue and expense items throughout the
consolidated statement of operations. The change also has an
impact on the Company's consolidated balance sheet and consolidated
statement of cash flows for those periods.
Additionally, the Company evaluated its
historical and current practices with respect to accounting for
foreign currency matters under Accounting Standards Codification
Topic 830 (“ASC 830”) in accordance US GAAP. In connection
with this evaluation, the Company has determined that its previous
accounting treatment for certain foreign currency matters during
the Non-Reliance Periods was not appropriate and required
adjustments. In connection with the restatement of the
financial statements for the Non-Reliance Periods, the Company has
reviewed the financial statements for all errors, including known
errors that were previously not corrected in prior filings as
immaterial out-of-period adjustments. As described below,
these adjustments relating to recording errors and ASC 830 do
effect the Company’s net income or loss during the Non-Reliance
Periods.
Based on the Company's review to date,
management anticipates that the restatement described above will
result in the following changes to income (loss) before taxes and
net income:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Period |
Income
(loss)before taxes prior toRestatement |
Income
(loss)before taxes prior afterRestatement |
Increase(Decrease) |
Net
income(loss) prior toRestatement |
Net
income(loss) afterRestatement |
Increase(Decrease) |
|
|
|
(Dollars in Millions) |
Fiscal 2014 |
$ 11.0 |
|
$ 10.3 |
|
$ (0.7) |
|
$ 6.4 |
|
$ 6.0 |
|
$ (0.4) |
|
Fiscal 2015 |
4.8 |
|
2.9 |
|
(1.9) |
|
2.7 |
|
1.7 |
|
(1.0) |
|
Fiscal 2016 |
13.5 |
|
13.9 |
|
0.4 |
|
10.6 |
|
10.3 |
|
(0.3) |
|
Three months ended
December 31, 2016 |
(1.0) |
|
(1.4) |
|
(0.4) |
|
(0.6) |
|
(1.9) |
|
(1.3) |
|
Three months ended
March 31, 2017 |
(9.4) |
|
(9.7) |
|
(0.3) |
|
(5.6) |
|
(8.0) |
|
(2.4) |
|
Three months ended June
30, 2017 |
4.3 |
|
3.6 |
|
(0.7) |
|
2.6 |
|
2.9 |
|
0.3 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Additionally, the cumulative restatement change
through June 30, 2017 to the Company's consolidated balance sheet
for the Non-Reliance Periods was a decrease in total assets of $3.5
million; a decrease in total liabilities of $0.8 million; and a
decrease to stockholders' equity of $2.7 million. At June 30,
2017, after the restatement of the financial statements for the
Non-Reliance Periods, the Company had approximately $212.7 million
in total assets; $93.5 million in total liabilities; and $119.2
million in stockholders' equity. The cumulative restatement
change for the Non-Reliance Periods had no effect on cash and cash
equivalents.
The Company's management is also reassessing its
tax provision preparation and review processes and their impact on
the Company's internal controls and will amend, as necessary, any
disclosures pertaining to its evaluation of such controls and
procedures in connection with its amended Annual Reports on Form
10-K and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for the periods described
above.
The Company’s management has determined that
there were deficiencies in its internal control over financial
reporting disclosures specifically associated with foreign
transactions, significant entities and related party transactions
that constituted material weaknesses during the Non-Reliance
Periods. The Company has and will continue to develop
policies, procedures and controls for the specific areas identified
in these material weaknesses.
The Company is not currently aware of any other
errors in its financial statements, other than those discussed
above, requiring adjustment to any prior period financial
statement. However, there can be no assurances that the Company or
its independent registered public accounting firms will not find
additional errors in the Company’s financial statements requiring
further adjustment in those or earlier reports.
The Company expects to file an amendment on Form
10-K/A to its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal years ended
September 30, 2016, 2015 and 2014 to restate the audited
consolidated financial statements included in the Annual Report on
Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2016 and
amendments on Form 10-Q/A to its Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for
the fiscal quarters ended December 31, 2016, March 31, 2017 and
June 30, 2017 to correct the errors described above. The Company is
seeking to file the amendments on Form 10-K/A and Form 10-Q/A as
soon as reasonably practicable.
The Company also is seeking to file its Annual
Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2017
and its Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarters
ended December 31, 2017, March 31, 2018 and June 30, 2018 as soon
as reasonably practicable.
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, the restatement of previously issued financial
statements, the identified material weaknesses in our internal
control over financial reporting and our ability remediate those
material weaknesses, our ability to regain compliance with Nasdaq
listing standards and maintain the continued listing of our
securities on Nasdaq, 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 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,
CFO |
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Asta Funding,
Inc. |
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(201) 567-5648 |
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