Axos Financial, Inc. Reports Record Second Quarter 2020 Earnings

Axos Financial, Inc. (NYSE: AX) (“Axos”), parent company of Axos Bank (the “Bank”), today announced financial results for the second fiscal quarter ended December 31, 2019. Net income was $41.3 million, an increase of 6.3% from $38.8 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2018. Earnings attributable to Axos’ common stockholders were $41.2 million or $0.67 per diluted share for the second quarter of fiscal 2020, an increase of 6.3% from $38.8 million or $0.62 per diluted share for the second quarter ended December 31, 2018.

Adjusted earnings and adjusted earnings per diluted common share (“adjusted EPS”), non-GAAP measures, which excludes non-cash amortization expenses and non-recurring costs related to mergers and acquisitions, and other non-recurring costs increased 8.4% to $42.9 million and increased 9.5% to $0.69, respectively, for the quarter ended December 31, 2019 compared to $39.6 million and $0.63, respectively, for the quarter ended December 31, 2018.

Second Quarter Fiscal 2020 Financial Summary:

For the six months ended December 31, 2019, net income was $82.1 million, an increase of 8.5% over net income of $75.7 million for the six months ended December 31, 2018. Earnings attributable to Axos’ common stockholders were $81.9 million or $1.32 per diluted share for the six months ended December 31, 2019, an increase of 10.0% from $75.5 million or $1.20 per diluted share for the six months ended December 31, 2018. Higher earnings for the fiscal second quarter and for the six months ended December 31, 2019 were primarily the result of growth in the Bank’s loan and lease portfolio.

“We achieved net income of $41.3 million this quarter as a result of strong loan growth and stable net interest margins,” stated Greg Garrabrants, President and Chief Executive Officer of Axos. “Ending loan balances increased 14.6% annualized from September 30, 2019, led by strong growth in commercial specialty real estate, commercial lender finance, mortgage warehouse and equipment leasing. Net interest margin increased 10 basis points linked quarter to 3.87% as a result of steady loan yields and a decline in our funding costs. The diversity of our lending, deposit and fee income businesses position us well in a variety of competitive and interest rate environments.”

“We continue to make investments across each of our consumer, commercial and securities businesses while maintaining a relatively stable efficiency ratio,” stated Andy Micheletti, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Axos. “Our banking business efficiency ratio was 43.81% this quarter, relatively flat compared to 43.93% in the quarter ended September 30, 2019.”

Other Highlights:

• Total assets reached $12.3 billion, up $2.5 billion or 25.1% compared to December 31, 2018
• Loan and lease portfolio grew by $1.1 billion or 12.5% compared to December 31, 2018
• Loan and lease originations for the three months ended December 31, 2019 were approximately $2.1 billion, up 17.2% compared to the quarter ended September 30, 2019
• Total deposits increased by $1.8 billion, up 21.3% from December 31, 2018
• Net interest margin was 3.87% compared to 3.77% in the three months ended September 30, 2019; net interest margin for the banking business segment was 3.94% compared to 3.83% in the September 30, 2019 period
• Efficiency ratio for the banking business segment was 43.81% compared to 43.93% in the September 30, 2019 period
• Return on average common stockholders’ equity was 14.35% for the three months ended December 31, 2019
• Book value increased to $18.84 per share, up 16.6% from December 31, 2018

Second Quarter Fiscal 2020 Income Statement Summary

During the quarter ended December 31, 2019, Axos earned $41.2 million or $0.67 per diluted share compared to $38.8 million, or $0.62 per diluted share for the quarter ended December 31, 2018. Net interest income increased $15.7 million or 16.9% for the quarter ended December 31, 2019 compared to December 31, 2018, primarily due to $1.6 billion growth in average-earning assets at the Bank and the acquisition of the Securities Business.

The loan and lease loss provision was $4.5 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2019 compared to $5.0 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2018. The decrease in the provision is primarily the result of changes in the mix of the loan and lease portfolio. A charge-off of $4.1 million this quarter had no impact on loss provisions this quarter. Discussed last quarter, the $4.1 million was receivables factoring for one bank customer which was classified doubtful and fully reserved in the quarter ended September 30, 2019.

For the second quarter ended December 31, 2019, non-interest income was $21.2 million compared to $16.9 million for the three months ended December 31, 2018. The $4.3 million increase year over year was primarily the result of the addition of broker-dealer fee income of $5.6 million due to our acquisitions and a $1.4 million increase in mortgage banking, partially offset by a decrease of $2.2 million in banking and service fees, primarily due to lower fee income from third-party banks of Axos Fiduciary Services as more deposits have been transferred to Axos Bank.

Non-interest expense or operating costs increased $16.0 million to $67.0 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2019 from $50.9 million for the three months ended December 31, 2018. The increase was mainly a result of an increase in salaries and related expense of $4.8 million due to staffing additions from the acquisition of the Securities Business and to support growth in the Bank’s operations. Other operating expense increases include an increase of $2.5 million in data processing due to additions from the acquisitions of the Securities Business, software initiatives and enhancements to the Bank’s core processing system, a $2.5 million increase in depreciation and amortization primarily due to amortization of intangibles, a $1.9 million increase in broker-dealer clearing charges, and a $2.0 million increase in other general and administrative expenses.

Balance Sheet Summary

Axos’ total assets increased $1,049.1 million, or 9.3%, to $12,269.3 million, as of December 31, 2019, up from $11,220.2 million at June 30, 2019. The increase in total assets was primarily due to an increase in loan portfolio growth of $759.3 million on a net basis, primarily from portfolio loan originations of $2,896.9 million less principal repayments and other adjustments of $2,137.6 million. Customer, broker-dealer, and clearing receivables increased by $41.2 million. Investment securities decreased $17.7 million primarily due to repayments of available-for-sale securities. Total liabilities increased by $961.3 million, or 9.5%, to $11,108.5 million at December 31, 2019, up from $10,147.2 million at June 30, 2019. The increase in total liabilities primarily resulted from an increase in deposits of $1,131.2 million, partially offset by a $201.0 million decrease in advances from the FHLB. Stockholders’ equity increased by $87.7 million, or 8.2%, to $1,160.8 million at December 31, 2019 from $1,073.1 million at June 30, 2019. The increase was primarily the result of $82.1 million in net income, $6.0 million of vesting and issuance of RSUs and stock-based compensation expense, partially offset by $0.2 million of dividends declared on preferred stock.

The Bank’s Tier 1 core capital to adjusted average assets ratio was 9.16% at December 31, 2019.

Conference Call

A conference call and webcast will be held on Wednesday, January 29, 2020 at 5:00 PM Eastern / 2:00 PM Pacific. Analysts and investors may dial in and participate in the question/answer session. To access the call, please dial: 877-407-8293. The conference call will be webcast live and may be accessed at Axos’ website, http://www.axosfinancial.com. For those unable to listen to the live broadcast, a replay will be available until February 29, 2020, at Axos’ website and telephonically by dialing toll-free number 877-660-6853, passcode 13697933.

About Axos Financial, Inc. and Subsidiaries

The condensed consolidated financial statements include the accounts of Axos Financial, Inc. (“Axos”) and its wholly owned subsidiaries, Axos Bank (the “Bank”) and Axos Nevada Holding, LLC (the “Axos Nevada Holding” and collectively, the “Company”). Axos Nevada Holding wholly owns its subsidiary Axos Securities, LLC, which wholly owns subsidiaries AxosClearing, LLC, a clearing broker dealer, Axos Invest, Inc., a registered investment advisor, and Axos Invest, LLC, an introducing broker dealer. With approximately $12.3 billion in assets, Axos Bank provides consumer and business banking products through its low-cost distribution channels and affinity partners. Axos Clearing LLC and Axos Invest, Inc., provide comprehensive securities clearing services to introducing broker-dealers and registered investment advisor correspondents and digital investment advisory services to retail investors, respectively. Axos Financial, Inc.’s common stock is listed on the NYSE under the symbol “AX” and is a component of the Russell 2000^® Index and the S&P SmallCap 600^® Index. For more information on Axos Bank, please visit axosbank.com.

Segment Reporting

The Company determines reportable segments based on what separate financial information is available and what segment results are evaluated regularly by the Chief Executive Officer in deciding how to allocate resources and in assessing performance. The Company operates through two segments: Banking Business and Securities Business. In order to reconcile the two segments to the consolidated totals, the Company includes parent-only activities and intercompany eliminations.

The following tables present the operating results of the segments:

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures

In addition to the results presented in accordance with GAAP, this report includes non-GAAP financial measures such as adjusted earnings, adjusted earnings per common share, and tangible book value per common share. Non-GAAP financial measures have inherent limitations, are not required to be uniformly applied and are not audited. Readers should be aware of these limitations and should be cautious as to their use of such measures. Although we believe the non-GAAP financial measures disclosed in this report enhance investors’ understanding of our business and performance, these non-GAAP measures should not be considered in isolation, or as a substitute for GAAP basis financial measures.

We define net income without the after-tax impact of non-recurring acquisition-related costs (including amortization of intangible assets related to acquisitions), and excess FDIC expense, and other costs (unusual or non-recurring charges), as “adjusted earnings”, a non-GAAP financial measure. Excess FDIC expense is defined as the higher insurance costs associated with increased levels of short-term brokered deposits in anticipation of the acquisition of deposits from Nationwide Bank. Adjusted earnings per diluted common share (“adjusted EPS”), a non-GAAP financial measure, is calculated by dividing non-GAAP adjusted earnings by the average number of diluted common shares outstanding during the period. We believe the non-GAAP measures of adjusted earnings and adjusted EPS provide useful information about the Bank’s operating performance. Excluding the non-recurring acquisition related costs, excessive FDIC expense, and other costs provides investors with an understanding of Axos’ business without these non-recurring costs.

Below is a reconciliation of net income to adjusted earnings and adjusted EPS (Non-GAAP) for the periods shown:

We define book value adjusted for goodwill and other intangible assets as tangible book value (“tangible book value”), a non-GAAP financial measure. Tangible book value is calculated using common stockholders’ equity minus mortgage servicing rights, goodwill and other intangible assets. Tangible book value per common share, a non-GAAP financial measure, is calculated by dividing tangible book value by the common shares outstanding at the end of the period. We believe tangible book value per common share is useful in evaluating the Company’s capital strength, financial condition, and ability to manage potential losses.

Below is a reconciliation of total stockholders’ equity to tangible book value (Non-GAAP) as of the dates indicated:

Forward-Looking Safe Harbor Statement

This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, including without limitation statements relating to Axos’ financial prospects and other projections of its performance and asset quality, Axos’ ability to continue to grow profitably and increase its business, Axos’ ability to successfully integrate its recent acquisitions and realize the anticipated benefits of the transactions, Axos’ ability to continue to diversify its lending and deposit franchises, the outcome and effects of pending class action litigation filed against the Company, and the anticipated timing and financial performance of other offerings, initiatives, and acquisitions. These forward-looking statements are made on the basis of the views and assumptions of management regarding future events and performance as of the date of this press release. Actual results and the timing of events could differ materially from those expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements as a result of risks and uncertainties, including without limitation changes in interest rates, inflation, government regulation, general economic conditions, conditions in the real estate markets in which we operate and other factors beyond our control. These and other risks and uncertainties detailed in Axos’ periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in any forward-looking statements. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release. All forward-looking statements are qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement, and Axos undertakes no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this press release.

The following tables set forth certain selected financial data concerning the periods indicated:

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Investor Relations Contact:
Johnny Lai, CFA
VP, Corporate Development & Investor Relations
858-649-2218
[email protected]