Equity Financial Holdings Reports Year-End 2015 Results

TORONTO, Feb. 9, 2016 /CNW/ - Equity Financial Holdings Inc. (TSX: EQI) ("EQI" or the "Corporation"), which offers residential mortgage loans through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Equity Financial Trust Company ("Equity Trust"), today reported its consolidated financial results for the year-ended December 31, 2015.

(dollar amounts, except per-share, are in $000s)

2015 Financial Highlights

• Mortgage originations of $214,851 for the year, up 204% from 2014
• Quarter over quarter increases in mortgage originations throughout 2015
• Mortgage loan book of $383,282, up 29% from 2014 and within 3% of previous high level
• Net interest margin of 2.91%
• Net interest income of $10,340, down 20% from 2014 on lower margin and average portfolio size
• Adjusted net loss of $1,290, adjusted basic loss per share of $0.14
• Net loss of $2,157, including charge for contingent consideration of $1,000 ($867 after tax)¹
• Regulatory capital of $84,200 as at December 31, 2015
• Book value per share of $9.80 as at December 31, 2015

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1} Adjusted net loss and adjusted basic loss per share are defined in the Non-IFRS Financial Measures section of our MD&A for the year ended December 31, 2015. Reported net loss includes a charge for contingent consideration of $1,000 ($867 after tax) related to the 2013 sale of our transfer agent and corporate trust business. Contingent consideration payable of $1,000 is the maximum contractual amount.

Equity Financial Holdings CEO Michael R. Jones said,
"Mortgage portfolio growth resumed in 2015 with increasing quarterly originations, culminating in fourth quarter originations of nearly $80 million, our highest fourth quarter and second highest quarterly total in the company's mortgage lending history.  In total, we originated new mortgages of $215 million in 2015, an increase of 204% compared to the prior year and our mortgage loan book grew 29% to end 2015 at $383 million, just below our previous high level.

We begin 2016 with fully staffed and trained mortgage underwriting and servicing teams as well as a risk management and compliance infrastructure designed to meet the requirements of the current regulatory environment.  We remain focused on the non-prime and near-prime residential mortgage market in Ontario and our sales and marketing team will continue to develop and build our key mortgage broker relationships.  The primary focus of our management team in 2016 is to increase the size of our mortgage loan book while also preserving our average net interest margin, leading to profitable earnings levels in the near term."

Audited Consolidated Financial Statements and Management's Discussion and Analysis for the year ended December 31, 2015 can be found on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and on our website at www.equityfinancialtrust.com.

Analyst Conference Call

EQI will hold a conference call on February 11, 2016 at 10 a.m. Eastern Time to discuss its operating results and to answer questions. Participants can dial in locally at 647.427.7450 or toll free at 1.888.231.8191 and use Conference ID 42106651.

Conference Call Archive

A telephone replay of the call will be available between 1:00 p.m. Eastern TimeFebruary 11, 2016 and midnight March 10, 2016 by calling 416.849.0833 or toll free at 1.855.859.2056 (enter passcode 42106651).

Forward Looking Information

Certain portions of this press release as well as other public statements by the Corporation contain "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation, which is also referred to as "forward-looking statements", which may not be based on historical fact. Wherever possible, words such as "will", "plans," "expects," "targets," "continues", "estimates," "scheduled," "anticipates," "believes," "intends," "may," "could," "would" or might, and the negative of such expressions or statements that certain actions, events or results "may," "could," "would," "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved, have been used to identify forward-looking information. Such forward-looking statements include, without limitation, the Corporation's expectations in respect of earnings, fee income, expense levels, future loans and originations, repayment by borrowers, general economic, political and market factors in North America and internationally, interest and foreign exchange rates, global equity and capital markets activities, the Corporation's expected need for equity or debt financing, business competition, technological change, changes in government regulations and regulatory guidelines, unexpected judicial or regulatory proceedings, catastrophic events, and the Corporation's ability to complete strategic transactions and integrate acquisitions and other factors. Forward looking statements should not be read as guarantees of future events, future performance or results, and will not necessarily be accurate indicators of the times at, or by which, such events, performance or results will be achieved, if achieved at all.

All material assumptions used in making forward-looking statements are based on management's knowledge of current business conditions and expectations of future business conditions and trends, including their knowledge of the current credit, interest rate and liquidity conditions affecting the Corporation and the Canadian economy, retail mortgage markets, housing sales and capital markets. Certain material factors or assumptions are applied by the Corporation in making forward-looking statements, including without limitation, factors and assumptions regarding interest rates, availability of key personnel, the effect of competition, government regulation of its business, computer failure or security breaches, future capital requirements, its ability to fund its mortgage business, the value of mortgage originations, the competitive nature of the alternative mortgage market, the expected margin between the interest earned on its mortgage portfolio and the interest to be paid on its deposits, the relative continued health of real estate markets, acceptance of its products in the marketplace, as well as its operating cost structure and the current tax regime.

Forward-looking statements reflect the Corporation's current views with respect to future events and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from results contemplated by the forward-looking statements. Readers should not place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements, as they reflect the Corporation's current views with respect to future events and are subject to risks and uncertainties and are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by the Corporation, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, regulatory, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies. Many factors could cause the Corporation's actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance, or achievements that may be expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, including among others, a significant downturn in capital markets or the economy as a whole, errors or omissions by the Corporation in providing services to its customers, significant increases in the cost of complying with applicable regulatory requirements, civil unrest, economic recession, pandemics, war and acts of terrorism which may adversely impact the North American and global economic and financial markets, inability to raise funds through public or private financing significant changes in interest rates, failure by Equity Trust  to meet ongoing regulatory requirements, the failure of borrowers or counterparties to honour their financial or contractual obligations to Equity Trust, failure by Equity Trust to adequately monitor and/or adjust its mortgage portfolio management practices for changing circumstances, failure by the Corporation to attract and to retain the necessary employees to meet its needs, failure by Equity Trust to adequately monitor the services provided by third party service providers or to establish alternative arrangements if required, failure by Equity Trust to secure sufficient deposits from securities dealers or a sufficient level of mortgage origination from its mortgage broker network, a failure of the computer systems of the Corporation or one or more of its service providers or the risks detailed from time-to-time in the Corporation's quarterly filings, annual information forms, annual reports and annual filings with securities regulators. The preceding list is not exhaustive of possible factors. The Corporation disclaims any intent or obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, estimates, future events or results, or otherwise, unless required to do so by applicable laws. The forward looking statements contained herein are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement.

About Equity Financial Holdings Inc.

The Corporation is a financial services company operating through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Equity Trust, a federally regulated deposit-taking institution. Equity Trust serves the Canadian alternative mortgage market by offering residential mortgage loans to non-prime and near-prime customers who do not meet the conventional underwriting standards of the major Canadian banks.  Learn more at www.equityfinancialtrust.com.

SOURCE Equity Financial Holdings Inc.

Image with caption: "Figure 1: Quarterly Mortgage Loan Originations and Portfolio Balance 2013 - 2015 ($ millions) (CNW Group/Equity Financial Holdings Inc.)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20160209_C1786_PHOTO_EN_617163.jpg