Ujjaval Desai: Thank you to everyone joining us today, and welcome to the SoundPoint Meridian Capital earnings call for the third fiscal quarter ended December 31, 2025. We'd like to invite you to download our investor presentation from our website, which provides additional information about the company and our portfolio. With me today is our Chief Financial Officer, Dan Fabian, and after our prepared remarks, we will open up the call to your questions. For the third fiscal quarter ended December 31, 2025, ...

Financial Data and Key Metrics Changes - The company generated net investment income less realized losses from investments of $0.16 per share, consisting of $0.23 of net investment income offset by $0.07 of realized losses from investments [5][14] - The NAV as of June 30 was $7.31 per share, up 1.1% from $7.23 as of March 31 [6] - The company recorded GAAP net income of $58 million or $0.47 per share for the second quarter, compared to GAAP net losses of $0.84 per share in the previous year [16] Business Line Data and Key Metrics Changes - Recurring cash flows for the second quarter were $85 million or $0.69 per share, exceeding quarterly aggregate common distributions and total expenses by $0.08 per share [6][12] - The company deployed $86 million into new investments during the quarter, taking advantage of market dislocation to acquire CLO equity positions at attractive levels [7][19] Market Data and Key Metrics Changes - The S&P UBS Leveraged Loan Index experienced a total return of 2.3% for the second quarter, recovering from a decline in April [20] - The trailing twelve-month default rate for loans stood at 1.1% as of June 30, well below the long-term average of 2.6% [21] Company Strategy and Development Direction - The company is focused on refinancing and reset activities to reduce CLO financing costs and enhance net investment income [9][25] - A second strategic CLO collateral manager partnership was established, which is expected to enhance shareholder returns over time [11][62] Management's Comments on Operating Environment and Future Outlook - Management expressed a positive outlook for the portfolio, citing strong recurring cash flows and a robust pipeline of refinancing opportunities [26] - The company believes that the market dislocation presents opportunities for CLO equity investors with the right positioning and patience [25] Other Important Information - The company issued $41 million of common stock at a premium to NAV, resulting in an accretion of NAV by $0.02 per share during the quarter [10] - The company's asset coverage ratios for preferred stock and debt were 243% and 525%, respectively, exceeding statutory requirements [17] Q&A Session Summary Question: What drove the realized losses this quarter? - Realized losses included $0.02 from trading losses and $0.05 from the reclassification of three CLO equity positions that were past their reinvestment period [35][36] Question: Can you shed light on the significant sell-off in CLO equity recently? - The sell-off was primarily driven by more sellers than buyers, with concerns about tariff-related increases in defaults contributing to market sentiment [82][83] Question: How sensitive are repayments to lower rates? - Repayments are driven by bullish or bearish sentiment on spreads rather than interest rates, with higher repayments typically occurring in strong debt markets [68][70]

Financial Data and Key Metrics Changes - The company generated net investment income and realized capital gains of $0.33 per share for Q1 2025, consisting of $0.28 of net investment income and $0.05 of realized capital gains [7] - The NAV as of March 31 was $7.23 per share, a 13.7% decrease from $8.38 per share at year-end [8] - The company's first quarter GAAP net loss was $97.5 million, with total investment income of $52.3 million and realized capital gains of $5.3 million [16] Business Line Data and Key Metrics Changes - The company priced three new CLO equity investments and reset nine positions in its portfolio, lengthening reinvestment periods to five years [5] - During Q1, sales and paydowns of CLO debt in the portfolio totaled $48.5 million, generating $0.05 per share of realized gains [10] - Approximately 18% of the CLO equity portfolio based on fair value are new investments or recently reset CLOs, scheduled to make initial payments in subsequent quarters [12] Market Data and Key Metrics Changes - The S&P UBS Leveraged Loan Index generated a total return of 0.6% during Q1, with a trailing twelve-month default rate of 82 basis points, well below the long-term average of 2.6% [20][21] - The weighted average spread of the CLO's underlying loan portfolios stood at 3.36% as of March 31, down from 3.49% at year-end [22] - The percentage of loans trading below 80 within the CLOs stood at 2.9%, more favorable than the market average of 4.6% [26] Company Strategy and Development Direction - The company has completed its planned portfolio rotation from CLO debt into CLO equity and other investments prior to the recent market volatility [10] - The focus remains on enhancing net investment income and cash flow through proactive investment strategies, particularly in resetting and refinancing CLOs [29] - The company maintains 100% fixed-rate financing with no maturities prior to 2028, providing protection from future interest rate rises [27] Management's Comments on Operating Environment and Future Outlook - Management views the recent market price fluctuations as short-term and not indicative of concerns specific to the portfolio [9] - The company believes that current discounted loan opportunities will benefit it in the medium term, similar to past periods of volatility [10] - Management remains optimistic about the stability of cash flows and the potential for increased CLO refinancing and reset activity as markets stabilize [28] Other Important Information - The company utilized its at-the-market program to issue $66 million of common stock at a premium to NAV, resulting in NAV accretion of $0.02 per share [13] - The company declared common regular monthly distributions for Q3 2025 of $0.14 per share [14] Q&A Session Summary Question: What will it take for the market to recognize the stability of CLO cash flows? - Management noted that cash flows have historically been stable and continue to come in despite market fluctuations [32][34] Question: Will the pace of resets and refinancings continue? - Management indicated that while the pace may slow, they expect single to double-digit resets per quarter under current market conditions [48][50] Question: What accounts for the difference between gross and net capital deployed? - The difference is due to significant rotation from CLO debt into CLO equity, which reduces the net capital figure [54] Question: Why was the pace of deployment slower in April? - Management explained that market volatility led to a slowdown in CLO equity trading, affecting deployment speed [60][62] Question: How does the company handle loan loss reserves compared to banks? - Management clarified that while they do not reserve for loan losses like banks, their effective yields account for future losses, and they focus on cash generation [90][92]