Pinetree Capital Ltd Announces Unaudited Financial Results for the Quarter Ended March 31, 2020

TORONTO, May 07, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pinetree Capital Ltd. (TSX:PNP) (“Pinetree” or the “Company”) today announced its financial results for the three months ended March 31, 2020. All financial information provided in this press release is unaudited and all figures are in $’000 except per share amounts and shares outstanding.

Unaudited financial results for the period ended March 31, 2020

The following information should be read in conjunction with our annual audited Consolidated Financial Statements, prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”) and our annual Management Discussion and Analysis for the year ended December 31, 2019, which can be found on SEDAR at .

Selected Financial Information 

¹ Refer to “Use of Non-IFRS Financial Measures”

Shares Outstanding and Book Value amounts are as at the Quarter End date

Operating Expenses amounts are for the Three months ending the Quarter End date

² Operating Expenses do not include Foreign Exchange gain (loss) on financial assets other than investments

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a severe impact on society and the economy, the consequences of which have yet to be fully understood or quantified. As such, public markets went through a period of extreme volatility during the tail-end of the quarter and suffered one of the sharpest price declines in recent history. Pinetree’s portfolio investments were no exception, resulting in a significant decline in BVPS.

As at March 31, 2020, Pinetree’s BVPS was $1.72 as compared to $1.98 as at December 31, 2019, representing a decrease of $0.26 or 13%. The decrease was primarily due to the decline in stock prices of investments held in Pinetree’s portfolio.

As at March 31, 2020, the Company held investments at fair value totaling $8,798, which represented 57% of book value. This compares to investments at fair value of $10,105 representing 56% of book value as at December 31, 2019.

During the period ended March 31, 2020, the Company continued to take a disciplined approach to capital allocation and OpEx control. OpEx for the twelve months ended March 31, 2020 was $470 which corresponds to 3.0% of book value as at March 31, 2020. This compares to OpEx of $514 for the twelve months ended March 31, 2019 which corresponds to 3.0% of book value as at March 31, 2019. Since expenses fluctuate from quarter to quarter, management monitors costs on a trailing twelve month basis.

The net investment losses for the three months ended March 31, 2020 were $2,388 (three months ended March 31, 2019 – gain of $1,241) as a result of net realized losses on investments and net change in unrealized gains.

For the three months ended March 31, 2020, other income totalled $91 as compared to other income of $32 for the three months ended March 31, 2019. Other income is comprised of interest and dividend income.

Note Regarding AGM

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Company’s Annual General Meeting, which would usually occur during Q2, has been postponed until further notice. The Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) has extended the deadline for reporting issuers to hold their meeting until December 31, 2020.

Forward Looking Statements

Certain statements herein may be “forward looking” statements that involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of Pinetree or the industry to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties, should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results, and will not necessarily be accurate indications of whether or not such results will be achieved. A number of factors could cause actual results to vary significantly from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements reflect current assumptions and expectations regarding future events and operating performance and are made as of the date hereof and Pinetree assumes no obligation, except as required by law, to update any forward-looking statements to reflect new events or circumstances.

Non-IFRS Measures, Non-GAAP Measures

NAV (net asset value per share) is a non-IFRS (international financial reporting standards) measure calculated as the value of total assets less the value of total liabilities divided by the total number of common shares outstanding as at a specific date. The term NAV does not have any standardized meaning according to IFRS and therefore may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other companies. There is no comparable IFRS measure presented in Pinetree’s consolidated financial statements and thus no applicable quantitative reconciliation for such non-IFRS financial measure. The Company has calculated NAV consistently for many years and believes that NAV can provide information useful to its shareholders in understanding its performance and may assist in the evaluation of its business relative to that of its peers.

About Pinetree Capital Ltd.

Pinetree is a value-oriented investment and merchant banking company focused on the technology sector. Pinetree’s common shares are listed on the TSX under the symbol “PNP”.

For further information:

John Bouffard

Chief Financial Officer

416-941-9600