Asta Funding Reports Earnings Decline in Most Recent Quarter

Debt buyer Asta Funding reported early Wednesday lower net income for the quarter ended March 31, 2012 on a drop in cash collections.

Englewood Cliffs, N.J-based Asta Funding, Inc. (NASDAQ: ASFI) reported net income for its second fiscal quarter of 2012 of $2.5 million, or $0.17 per share, compared to net income of $2.9 million, or $0.19 per share, in the same period a year ago.

Total revenues for the three month period ended March 31, 2012 increased 2.1 percent to $11.5 million. Included in total revenues for Asta’s second quarter of fiscal year 2012 is approximately $492,000 from Pegasus Funding, LLC, the company’s new joint venture in the personal injury finance industry.

Net cash collections of consumer receivables acquired for liquidation, including net cash collections represented by account sales, declined 14.6 percent to $18.7 million in the quarter.

Investments in accounts acquired for liquidation portfolios totaled $1.3 million in the quarter, compared to $2.1 million in the same period a year ago.

“We are pleased with the results of the second quarter and six month period ended March 31, 2012 as we continue to generate strong cash flow and improve our liquidity position,” commented Gary Stern, Chairman and CEO of Asta. Mr. Stern continued, “We are also pleased with the progress of the new Pegasus Funding, LLC joint venture in which we invested approximately $8.3 million in personal injury claims.”

A conference call to discuss the results will be held on Wednesday, May 9, 2012 at 4:00PM, EDT. Interested parties in the U.S. and Canada can dial in on (800) 668-4132, while international callers should use (224) 357-2196.