- Financial Assets Division Reports Full Year Growth of 83% in Operating Income for 2023 -

Heritage Global Inc. (NASDAQ: HGBL) (“Heritage Global,” “HG” or “the Company”), an asset services company specializing in financial and industrial asset transactions, today reported financial results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2023.

Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2023 Summary of Financial Results (unaudited):

Heritage Global Chief Executive Officer Ross Dove commented, “2023 was the best year in our history, as demonstrated by our ability to achieve full-year 2023 operating income of $14.3 million. During the year, our business continued to capitalize on the macro-economic environment, where heightened economic pressures drove increased volumes in our Financial Asset and Industrial divisions.

“It’s been widely reported that consumer debt reached record levels in 2023, and with that, the volume of charged-off credit cards and non-performing loans increased. Accordingly, our Financial Asset division saw impressive momentum during the year, as we continued to successfully leverage our experience and expertise to win new brokerage contracts and specialty lending opportunities. In the third quarter we increased our credit reserve to account for increased risk with specific clients given their declining collection rates. We did not materially increase our credit reserve in the fourth quarter and will continue to maintain a conservative balance sheet to support the long-term growth opportunity of our Financial Asset division.

“In the current economic landscape, with many businesses continuing to scale down their operations, we are seeing increased office and facility closures. These activities drive volumes to the industrial side of our business as companies look to sell their surplus equipment and assets. While our auction business can see variability quarter to quarter, our pipeline remains strong and we expect continued strong auction activity as we move through 2024.

“I am pleased with our team’s efforts and execution this year, exemplified by our full-year operating income of $14.3 million. As we look forward to new growth opportunities in 2024, we remain uniquely positioned to capitalize on macro-economic tailwinds as we leverage our extensive industry experience and longstanding relationships to win new opportunities and further penetrate the market,” Mr. Dove concluded.

Fourth Quarter 2023 Highlights:

• The Company achieved operating income of $4.6 million for the fourth quarter of 2023, as compared to operating income of $3.1 million in the fourth quarter of 2022.
• EBITDA totaled $4.7 million in the fourth quarter of 2023 versus EBITDA of $3.3 million in the fourth quarter of 2022 and Adjusted EBITDA was $4.9 million compared to $3.4 million in the prior-year quarter.
• Based on the past several years of taxable income and projected operating results for the next five years, the Company determined that it is more likely than not that it will utilize a significant portion of its net operating loss carryforwards and thus released an additional $2.2 million of its valuation allowance against its deferred tax assets, as compared to $7.1 million during the fourth quarter of 2022. As a result, during the fourth quarter of 2023, the Company recognized an income tax benefit of $0.4 million compared to an income tax benefit of $6.8 million a year ago.
• Net income totaled $4.9 million (including a $0.4 million income tax benefit), or $0.13 of diluted earnings per share for the fourth quarter of 2023, as compared to net income of $10.0 million (including a $6.8 million income tax benefit), or $0.27 of diluted earnings per share in the prior-year quarter.
• Heritage Global maintains a strong balance sheet, with stockholders’ equity of $61.1 million as of December 31, 2023, compared to $48.3 million as of December 31, 2022. Net working capital was $11.6 million at the end of the fourth quarter of 2023.
• As of December 31, 2023, the Company held a gross balance of investments in notes receivable of $38.4 million, recorded in both notes receivable and equity method investments.
• The Company repurchased 152,707 shares of its common stock in the fourth quarter of 2023 at an average price per share of $2.62. As of December 31, 2023, the Company has repurchased a total of 396,175 shares of its common stock at an average price per share of $2.01 under its 2022 Repurchase Program.

Fourth Quarter Conference Call

Management will host a webcast and conference call today, Thursday, March 14, 2024, at 5:00 pm ET to discuss financial results for the fourth quarter and year end 2023. Analysts and investors may participate via conference call using the following dial-in information:

• 1-877-423-9813 (Domestic)
• 1-201-689-8573 (International)

In addition, individuals can use this link for telephone access to the call via their web browser. The webcast link is available here and will be available in the Investor Relations section of the Company’s website. To listen to a live broadcast, go to the site at least 10 minutes prior to the scheduled start time in order to register.

Replay

A replay of the call will be available on the Company’s website approximately three hours after the call ends through March 28, 2024. To access the replay, dial 1-844-512-2921 (domestic) or 1-412-317-6671 (international). The replay pin number is 13744488. The replay can also be accessed on the Investor Relations section of the Company’s website.

About Heritage Global Inc. (“HG”)

Heritage Global Inc. (NASDAQ: HGBL) values and monetizes industrial & financial assets by providing acquisition, disposition, valuation, and lending services for surplus and distressed assets. This aids in facilitating the circular economy by diverting useful industrial assets from landfills and operating an ethical supply chain by overseeing post-sale account activity of financial assets. Specialties consist of acting as an adviser, in addition to acquiring or brokering turnkey manufacturing facilities, surplus industrial machinery and equipment, industrial inventories, real estate, and charged-off account receivable portfolios through its two business units: Industrial Assets and Financial Assets.

Definitions and Disclosures Regarding non-GAAP Financial Information

The Company defines EBITDA as net income/loss plus depreciation and amortization, interest and other expense, and provision for income taxes. Adjusted EBITDA reflects EBITDA adjusted further to eliminate the effects of stock-based compensation. Management uses EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA in assessing the Company’s results, evaluating the Company’s performance and in reaching operating and strategic decisions. Management believes that the presentation of EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA, when considered together with our GAAP financial statements and the reconciliation to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure, is useful in providing investors a more complete understanding of the factors and trends affecting the underlying performance of the Company on a historical and ongoing basis. The Company’s use of EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA is not meant to be, and should not be, considered in isolation or as a substitute for, or superior to, any GAAP financial measure. You should carefully evaluate the financial information, below, which reconciles our GAAP reported net income to EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA for the periods presented (in thousands).

Forward-Looking Statements

This communication includes forward-looking statements based on our current expectations and projections about future events. For these statements, the Company claims the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. While the Company believes the forward-looking statements contained in this communication are accurate, these forward-looking statements represent the Company’s beliefs only as of the date of this communication, and there are a number of factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements, including variability in magnitude and timing of asset liquidation transactions, the impact of changes in the U.S. national and global economies, and interest rate and foreign exchange rate sensitivity, as well as other factors beyond the Company’s control. Unless required by law, we undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. In light of these risks, uncertainties and assumptions, you should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this release. For more details on factors that could affect these expectations, please see our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

-financial tables follow-

– EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA (non-GAAP measures) reconciliation follows –

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