WisdomTree Announces First Quarter 2022 Results - Diluted Loss Per Share of ($0.08) (Earnings Per Share of $0.09, as adjusted)

NEW YORK, N.Y., April 29, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- WisdomTree Investments, Inc. (NASDAQ: WETF) today reported financial results for the first quarter of 2022.

($10.3) million net loss ($14.1 ⁽¹⁾ million net income, as adjusted), see “Non-GAAP Financial Measurements” for additional information.

$17.0 million non-cash charge associated with the revaluation of deferred consideration – gold payments.

$79.4 billion of ending AUM, an increase of 2.5% arising from net inflows and market appreciation.

$1.3 billion of net inflows, primarily driven by inflows into our fixed income and U.S. equity products, partly offset by outflows from our commodity products.

0.40% average advisory fee, unchanged from the previous quarter.

$78.4 million of operating revenues, a decrease of 1.0% due to two fewer revenue days in the quarter, partly offset by higher average AUM.

80.2% gross margin⁽¹⁾, essentially unchanged from the previous quarter.

22.6% operating income margin (25.7%⁽¹⁾ as adjusted), a 5.9 point decrease (2.8 point decrease, as adjusted⁽¹⁾) primarily due to higher operating expenses. Our unadjusted operating income margin is impacted by $2.4 million of expenses incurred in responding to the activist campaign by ETFS Capital Limited and Lion Point Capital, LP (collectively, the “Investor Group”), as evidenced by their Schedule 13D, initially filed January 24, 2022, and thereafter amended (the “activist campaign”).

$0.03 quarterly dividend declared, payable on May 25, 2022 to stockholders of record as of the close of business on May 11, 2022.

Update from Jonathan Steinberg, WisdomTree CEO

Update from Jarrett Lilien, WisdomTree COO and President

OPERATING AND FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

RECENT BUSINESS DEVELOPMENTS

WISDOMTREE INVESTMENTS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
(in thousands, except per share amounts)
(Unaudited)

QUARTERLY HIGHLIGHTS

Operating Revenues

• Operating revenues decreased 1.0% from the fourth quarter of 2021 due to two fewer revenue days in the quarter, partly offset by higher average AUM.
• Operating revenues increased 10.0% from the first quarter of 2021 due to higher average AUM, partly offset by a lower average advisory fee.
• Our average advisory fee was 0.40%, 0.40% and 0.41% during the first quarter of 2022, the fourth quarter of 2021 and the first quarter of 2021, respectively.
  

Operating Expenses

• Operating expenses increased 7.2% from the fourth quarter of 2021 primarily due to $2.4 million of professional fees incurred in response to the activist campaign, higher compensation expense arising from seasonal payroll taxes and higher third-party distribution fees. These increases were partly offset by lower marketing expenses.
• Operating expenses increased 15.3% from the first quarter of 2021 primarily due to $2.4 million of professional fees incurred in response to the activist campaign, higher compensation arising from increased headcount, higher fund management and administration costs, as well as higher marketing expenses, third-party distribution fees and sales and business development expenses. These increases were partly offset by lower occupancy expenses.

Other Income/(Expenses)

• Interest expense was essentially unchanged from the fourth quarter of 2021. This expense increased 62.5% from the first quarter of 2021 due to a higher level of debt outstanding, partly offset by a lower effective interest rate.
• We recognized a non-cash loss on revaluation of deferred consideration of $17.0 million during the first quarter of 2022. The loss was due to higher forward-looking gold prices. The magnitude of any gain or loss recognized is highly correlated to the magnitude of the change in the forward-looking price of gold.
• Interest income decreased 8.1% from the fourth quarter of 2021 and increased 243.7% from first quarter of 2021 due to a change in our securities owned.
• Other net losses were $24.7 million for the first quarter of 2022. The quarter includes a non-cash charge of $19.9 million upon the release of tax-related indemnification assets arising from a favorable resolution of certain tax audits as well as the expiration of the statute of limitations (an equal and offsetting benefit was recognized in income tax expense). This quarter also includes losses on our securities owned of $5.1 million. Gains and losses also generally arise from the sale of gold earned from management fees paid by our physically-backed gold ETPs, foreign exchange fluctuations and other miscellaneous items.

Income Taxes

• Our effective income tax rate for the first quarter of 2022 was 62.0% resulting in an income tax benefit of $16.7 million. Our tax rate differs from the federal statutory rate of 21% primarily due to a reduction in unrecognized tax benefits associated with the release of the tax-related indemnification asset described above, a lower tax rate on foreign earnings and tax windfalls associated with the vesting of stock-based compensation awards. These items were partly offset by a non-taxable loss on revaluation of deferred consideration and an increase in the deferred tax asset valuation allowance on losses recognized on securities owned.
• Our adjusted effective income tax rate was 20.4%⁽¹⁾.

CONFERENCE CALL

WisdomTree will discuss its results and operational highlights during a conference call on Friday, April 29, 2022 at 9:00 a.m. ET. The call-in number is (877) 303-7209. Anyone outside the U.S. or Canada should call (970) 315-0420. The slides used during the presentation will be available at http://ir.wisdomtree.com. For those unable to join the conference call at the scheduled time, an audio replay will be available on http://ir.wisdomtree.com.

ABOUT WISDOMTREE

WisdomTree Investments, Inc., through its subsidiaries in the U.S. and Europe (collectively, “WisdomTree”), is an ETF and ETP sponsor and asset manager headquartered in New York. WisdomTree offers products covering equity, commodity, fixed income, leveraged and inverse, currency, cryptocurrency and alternative strategies. WisdomTree currently has over $77.8 billion in assets under management globally.

WisdomTree^® is the marketing name for WisdomTree Investments, Inc. and its subsidiaries worldwide.

WisdomTree Investments, Inc.

WISDOMTREE INVESTMENTS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
(in thousands, except per share amounts)

WISDOMTREE INVESTMENTS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
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Non-GAAP Financial Measurements

In an effort to provide additional information regarding our results as determined by GAAP, we also disclose certain non-GAAP information which we believe provides useful and meaningful information. Our management reviews these non-GAAP financial measurements when evaluating our financial performance and results of operations; therefore, we believe it is useful to provide information with respect to these non-GAAP measurements so as to share this perspective of management. Non-GAAP measurements do not have any standardized meaning, do not replace nor are superior to GAAP financial measurements and are unlikely to be comparable to similar measures presented by other companies. These non-GAAP financial measurements should be considered in the context with our GAAP results. The non-GAAP financial measurements contained in this press release include:

Adjusted Operating Income, Operating Expenses, Income Before Income Taxes, Income Tax Expense, Net Income and Diluted Earnings per Share

We disclose adjusted operating income, operating expenses, income before income taxes, income tax expense, net income and diluted earnings per share as non-GAAP financial measurements in order to report our results exclusive of items that are non-recurring or not core to our operating business. We believe presenting these non-GAAP financial measurements provides investors with a consistent way to analyze our performance. These non-GAAP financial measurements exclude the following:

Unrealized gains or losses on the revaluation of deferred consideration: Deferred consideration is an obligation we assumed in connection with the ETFS acquisition that is carried at fair value. This item represents the present value of an obligation to pay fixed ounces of gold into perpetuity and is measured using forward-looking gold prices. Changes in the forward-looking price of gold and changes in the discount rate used to compute the present value of the annual payment obligations may have a material impact on the carrying value of the deferred consideration and our reported financial results. We exclude this item when calculating our non-GAAP financial measurements as it is not core to our operating business. The item is not adjusted for income taxes as the obligation was assumed by a wholly-owned subsidiary of ours that is based in Jersey, a jurisdiction where we are subject to a zero percent tax rate.

Gains or losses on securities owned: We account for our securities owned as trading securities which requires these instruments to be measured at fair value with gains and losses reported in net income. In the third quarter of 2021, we began excluding these items when calculating our non-GAAP financial measurements as these securities have become a more meaningful percentage of total assets and the gains and losses introduce volatility in earnings and are not core to our operating business.

Tax windfalls and shortfalls upon vesting and exercise of stock-based compensation awards: GAAP requires the recognition of tax windfalls and shortfalls within income tax expense. These items arise upon the vesting and exercise of stock-based compensation awards and the magnitude is directly correlated to the number of awards vesting/exercised as well as the difference between the price of our stock on the date the award was granted and the date the award vested or was exercised. We exclude these items when calculating our non-GAAP financial measurements as they introduce volatility in earnings and are not core to our operating business.

Other items: Unrealized gains and losses recognized on our investments, changes in the deferred tax asset valuation allowance on securities owned, expenses incurred in response to the activist campaign, impairment charges and the remeasurement of contingent consideration payable to us from the sale of our Canadian ETF business.

Adjusted Effective Income Tax Rate

We disclose our adjusted effective income tax rate as a non-GAAP financial measurement in order to report our effective income tax rate exclusive of items that are non-recurring or not core to our operating business. We believe reporting our adjusted effective income tax rate provides investors with a consistent way to analyze our income taxes. Our adjusted effective income tax rate is calculated by dividing adjusted income tax expense by adjusted income before income taxes. See above for information regarding the items that are excluded.

Gross Margin and Gross Margin Percentage

We disclose our gross margin and gross margin percentage as non-GAAP financial measurements because we believe they provide investors with a consistent way to analyze the amount we retain after paying third-party service providers to operate our ETPs. These measures also assist us in analyzing the profitability of our products. We define gross margin as total operating revenues less fund management and administration expenses. Gross margin percentage is calculated as gross margin divided by total operating revenues.

WISDOMTREE INVESTMENTS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

GAAP to NON-GAAP RECONCILIATION (CONSOLIDATED)
(in thousands)
(Unaudited)

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements that are based on our management’s beliefs and assumptions and on information currently available to our management. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, these statements relate to future events or our future financial performance, and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors 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 these forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “expects,” “intends,” “plans,” “anticipates,” “believes,” “estimates,” “predicts,” “potential,” “continue” or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. These statements are only predictions. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements because they involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which are, in some cases, beyond our control and which could materially affect results. Factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations include, among other things, the risks described below. If one or more of these or other risks or uncertainties occur, or if our underlying assumptions prove to be incorrect, actual events or results may vary significantly from those implied or projected by the forward-looking statements. No forward-looking statement is a guarantee of future performance. You should read this press release completely and with the understanding that our actual future results may be materially different from any future results expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements.

In particular, forward-looking statements in this press release may include statements about

• the ultimate duration of the COVID-19 pandemic, or the war in Ukraine, and its short-term and long-term impact on our business and the global economy;
• anticipated trends, conditions and investor sentiment in the global markets and ETPs;
• anticipated levels of inflows into and outflows out of our ETPs;
• our ability to deliver favorable rates of return to investors;
• competition in our business;
• whether we will experience future growth;
• our ability to develop new products and services and their success;
• our ability to maintain current vendors or find new vendors to provide services to us at favorable costs;
• our ability to successfully implement our digital assets strategy, including WisdomTree Prime™, and achieve its objectives;
• our ability to successfully operate and expand our business in non-U.S. markets; and
• the effect of laws and regulations that apply to our business.
  

Our business is subject to many risks and uncertainties, including without limitation:

• adverse market developments arising from the COVID-19 pandemic could negatively impact our assets under management, resulting in a decline in our revenues and other potential operational challenges;
• declining prices of securities, gold and other precious metals and other commodities can adversely affect our business by reducing the market value of the assets we manage or causing WisdomTree ETP investors to sell their fund shares and trigger redemptions;
• fluctuations in the amount and mix of our AUM, whether caused by disruptions in the financial markets or otherwise, including but not limited to a pandemic event such as COVID-19, or the war in Ukraine, may negatively impact revenues and operating margins, and may impede our ability to refinance our debt upon maturity or, increase the cost of borrowing upon a refinancing;
• competitive pressures could reduce revenues and profit margins;
• we derive a substantial portion of our revenues from a limited number of products, and as a result, our operating results are particularly exposed to investor sentiment toward investing in the products’ strategies and our ability to maintain the AUM of these products, as well as the performance of these products and market-specific and political and economic risk;
• a significant portion of our AUM is held in products with exposure to U.S. and international developed markets and we therefore have exposure to domestic and foreign market conditions and are subject to currency exchange rate risks;
• withdrawals or broad changes in investments in our ETPs by investors with significant positions may negatively impact revenues and operating margins;
• over the last few years, we have expanded our business internationally. This expansion subjects us to increased operational, regulatory, financial and other risks;
• many of our ETPs have a limited track record, and poor investment performance could cause our revenues to decline;
• we depend on third parties to provide many critical services to operate our business and our ETPs. The failure of key vendors to adequately provide such services could materially affect our operating business and harm WisdomTree ETP investors; and
• actions of activist stockholders, such as the Investor Group, against us have been costly and may be disruptive and cause uncertainty about the strategic direction of our business.
  

Other factors, such as general economic conditions, including currency exchange rate fluctuations, also may have an effect on the results of our operations. For a more complete description of the risks noted above and other risks that could cause our actual results to differ from our current expectations, see “Risk Factors” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2021.

The forward-looking statements in this press release represent our views as of the date of this press release. We anticipate that subsequent events and developments may cause our views to change. However, while we may elect to update these forward-looking statements at some point in the future, we have no current intention of doing so except to the extent required by applicable law. Therefore, these forward-looking statements do not represent our views as of any date other than the date of this press release.

Released April 29, 2022