MCLEAN, Va., Aug. 3, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Gladstone Capital Corporation (Nasdaq: GLAD) (the "Company") today announced earnings for the third quarter ended June 30, 2011.  All per share references are per basic and diluted weighted average common shares outstanding, unless noted otherwise.

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Net Investment Income for 3 Months:  Net Investment Income for the quarter ended June 30, 2011 was $4.5 million, or $0.22 per share, as compared to $4.4 million, or $0.21 per share, for the prior year period, an increase in Net Investment Income of 2.4%.  Net Investment Income increased primarily due to an increase in interest income, partially offset by an increase in incentive fees.  The increase in interest income was largely due to an increase in the weighted average cost basis of the Company's interest-bearing investments which primarily resulted from the purchase of syndicated loans over the past two quarters.

Net Investment Income for 9 Months:  Net Investment Income for the nine months ended June 30, 2011 was $13.6 million, or $0.65 per share, as compared to $13.3 million, or $0.63 per share, for the prior year period, an increase in Net Investment Income of 2.0%.  Net Investment Income increased primarily due to decreased interest expenses resulting from lower average borrowings outstanding under the Company's credit facility and the reversal of related fees during the nine months ended June 30, 2011.  The weighted average balance outstanding on the credit facility during the nine months ended June 30, 2011 was approximately $32.6 million, as compared to $56.9 million in the prior year period, a decrease of 42.7%.  The decrease in interest expense was partially offset by a decrease in interest income and an increase in incentive fees.  Interest income from investments in debt securities decreased for the nine months ended June 30, 2011, due to a decrease in the average cost basis of the Company's interest-bearing investment portfolio, which primarily resulted from the increased principal repayments subsequent to June 30, 2010, partially offset by purchases of syndicated loans over the six months ended June 30, 2011.

Net Decrease in Net Assets Resulting from Operations for 3 Months:  Net Decrease in Net Assets Resulting from Operations for the quarter ended June 30, 2011 was $14.3 million, or $0.68 per share, as compared to $1.7 million, or $0.08 per share, for the prior year period.  The increase in Net Decrease in Net Assets Resulting from Operations from the prior year was primarily driven by net unrealized depreciation of the Company's investment portfolio of $18.8 million for the quarter ended June 30, 2011, compared to net unrealized depreciation of $1.6 million for the prior year period.  

Net (Decrease) Increase in Net Assets Resulting from Operations for 9 Months:  Net (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Operations for the nine months ended June 30, 2011 was ($20.6 million), or ($0.98) per share, as compared to a Net Increase in Net Assets Resulting from Operations of $12.6 million, or $0.60 per share, for the prior year period.  The decrease in the Net (Decrease) Increase in Net Assets Resulting from Operations from the prior year period was primarily driven by net unrealized depreciation of the Company's investment portfolio of $34.8 million for the nine months ended June 30, 2011, compared to net unrealized appreciation of $3.5 million for the prior year period.  

Investment Portfolio Fair Value:  The Company's aggregate investment portfolio depreciated during the quarter ended June 30, 2011, primarily due to depreciation in the debt of Newhall Holdings, Inc. and certain other proprietary investments.  As of June 30, 2011, the entire portfolio was fair valued at 79.8% of cost, which was a decrease of 6.4% from September 30, 2010.

Net Asset Value:  Net asset value was $10.34 per share as of June 30, 2011, as compared to $11.85 per share as of September 30, 2010.

Asset Characteristics:  Total assets were $314.1 million as of June 30, 2011, as compared to $270.5 million as of September 30, 2010. At June 30, 2011, the Company had investments in 57 portfolio companies with an aggregate cost basis of $375.2 million and an aggregate fair value of $299.3 million.  As of June 30, 2011, the Company's investment portfolio at fair value was comprised of 97.7% in debt securities and 2.3% in equity securities.  

Investment Yield:  The annualized weighted average yield on the Company's interest-bearing portfolio, excluding cash and cash equivalents, was 10.8% for the quarter ended June 30, 2011, as compared to 10.6% for the prior year period. The increase in the weighted average yield for the quarter ended June 30, 2011 primarily resulted from the repayment of loans with lower stated interest rates and the restructuring of certain loans into higher interest rates loans, partially offset by the purchase of syndicated loans which generally bear lower interest rates than the Company's proprietary debt investments.

Highlights for the Quarter:  For the quarter ended June 30, 2011, the following significant events occurred:

• New Investment Activity: The Company funded $56.9 million to fourteen new portfolio companies and $9.3 million of investments to existing portfolio companies, through revolver draws or addition of new term notes, for an aggregate of $66.2 million.
• Principal Repayments: The Company received aggregate repayments of $4.6 million, which included one payoff and various scheduled principal repayments.
• Distributions:  The Company paid monthly cash distributions to stockholders of $0.07 per share for each of April, May and June 2011.

Subsequent Events:  Subsequent to June 30, 2011, the flowing occurred:

• Additional Investments:  The Company funded $0.4 million of additional investments to existing portfolio companies.
• Principal Repayments: The Company received scheduled repayments of $1.9 million.
• Distributions Declared:  

Summary Information:  The following chart is a summary of some of the unaudited information reported above (dollars in thousands, except per share data) (unaudited):

Comments from our President Chip Stelljes:  "During the quarter, we invested $56.9 million in fourteen new portfolio companies, which follows investments of $35.2 million in six new portfolio companies during the prior quarter.  Additionally, we continue to devote management resources to our existing portfolio as we explore liquidity events and provide financial support to those companies where necessary.  We are actively reviewing new investment opportunities and believe that we will be able to continue our increased new investment activity over the next twelve months."

Conference Call for Stockholders: The Company will hold a conference call on August 4, 2011 at 8:30 am EDT.  Please call (800) 860-2442 to enter the conference.  An operator will monitor the call and set a queue for questions. A replay of the conference call will be available through September 3, 2011.  To hear the replay, please dial (877) 344-7529 and use conference number 10001387.  The replay will be available beginning approximately one hour after the call concludes.

The live audio broadcast of the Company's quarterly conference call will also be available online at www.GladstoneCapital.com. The event will be archived and available for replay on the Company's website through October 3, 2011.

Warning: The financial statements below are without footnotes so readers should obtain and carefully review the Company's Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2011, including the footnotes to the financial statements contained therein. The Company has filed the Form 10-Q today with the SEC, which can be retrieved from the SEC's website at www.sec.gov or from the Company's website at www.GladstoneCapital.com. To obtain a paper copy from us, please contact us at 1521 Westbranch Drive, Suite 200, McLean, VA 22102.

About us: Gladstone Capital Corporation is a publicly traded business development  company that invests in debt securities consisting primarily of senior term loans, second term lien loans, and senior subordinated term loans in small and medium-sized businesses. Information on the business activities of the Gladstone family of funds can be found at www.gladstonecompanies.com.

For Investor Relations inquiries related to any of the monthly dividend paying Gladstone family of funds, please visit www.gladstone.com.

The statements in this press release regarding the timing and the Company's ability to explore portfolio liquidity events, increase new investment activity and other such statements are "forward-looking statements." These forward-looking statements inherently involve certain risks and uncertainties, although they are based on the Company's current plans that are believed to be reasonable as of the date of this press release. Factors that may cause the Company's actual results to differ from these forward-looking statements include, among others, the duration and potential future effects of the current economic downturn on its portfolio companies and on the senior loan market, and those factors listed under the caption "Risk Factors" of the post-effective amendment of the Company's registration statement on Form N-2 (File No. 333-162592), filed by the Company with the SEC on July 13, 2011 (the "Form N-2"). The risk factors set forth in the Form N-2 under the caption "Risk Factors" are specifically incorporated by reference into this press release. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

SOURCE Gladstone Capital Corporation