Walker & Dunlop Reports Results for Q4 2023

Strongest Quarterly Results of the Year Driven by Highest Transaction Volume of 2023

FOURTH QUARTER 2023 HIGHLIGHTS

• Total transaction volume of $9.3 billion, down 17% from Q4’22
• Total revenues of $274.3 million, down 3% from Q4’22
• Net income of $31.6 million and diluted earnings per share of $0.93, down 24% and 25%, respectively, from Q4’22
• Adjusted EBITDA¹ of $87.6 million, down 5% from Q4’22
• Adjusted core EPS² of $1.42, up 1% from Q4’22
• Servicing portfolio of $130.5 billion as of December 31, 2023, up 6% from December 31, 2022
• Declared quarterly dividend of $0.65 per share for the first quarter of 2024, up 3% from the fourth quarter of 2023

FULL YEAR 2023 HIGHLIGHTS

• Total transaction volume of $33.0 billion, down 48% from 2022
• Total revenues of $1.1 billion, down 16% from 2022
• Net income of $107.4 million and diluted earnings per share of $3.18, both down 50% from 2022
• Adjusted EBITDA of $300.1 million, down 8% from 2022
• Adjusted core EPS of $4.68, down 16% from 2022

BETHESDA, Md.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Walker & Dunlop, Inc. (NYSE: WD) (the “Company,” “Walker & Dunlop,” or “W&D”) reported its strongest quarterly results of 2023 in the fourth quarter. Total revenues were $274.3 million in the fourth quarter, a decrease of 3% year over year. Fourth quarter total transaction volume was $9.3 billion, down 17% year over year. Net income for the fourth quarter of 2023 was $31.6 million, or $0.93 per diluted share, down 24% and 25%, respectively, year over year. Adjusted EBITDA was down only 5% over the same period in 2022, reflecting the stability of revenues from our servicing and asset management segment. The Company’s Board of Directors declared a dividend of $0.65 per share for the first quarter of 2024, the sixth consecutive year the dividend has increased.

“We ended 2023 with solid fourth quarter financial results thanks to $9.3 billion of sales and financing volume, combined with our recurring revenues from servicing and asset management, which drove our highest revenues and quarterly earnings of 2023,” commented Walker & Dunlop Chairman and CEO Willy Walker. “In an extremely challenging year — when W&D’s sales and financing volumes were off by 48% — it is a true testament to our business model, active management, and talented team that we generated over $300 million of adjusted EBITDA, only down 8% for the year.”

“Walker & Dunlop’s consistently conservative credit culture and focus on the multifamily industry paid dividends in 2023 and positions us well for any market rebound in 2024,” continued Walker. “But the commercial real estate market has plenty of challenges ahead, and the severity of those challenges will depend on the timing, pace, and degree of rate cuts. We are very bullish about Walker & Dunlop’s long-term outlook, and optimistic that 2024 will bring an uptick in financing and sales volumes throughout the CRE ecosystem.” Walker concluded, “W&D has the people, brand and technology to continue gaining market share and outperforming the competition.”

CONSOLIDATED FOURTH QUARTER 2023 OPERATING RESULTS

Discussion of Results:

• Total debt financing volume decreased 19% due to the continued challenging macroeconomic environment in the fourth quarter of 2023. The $9.3 billion in total transaction volume represents a 9% sequential increase in transaction volume from the third quarter and our highest quarterly volume of 2023.
• Fannie Mae transaction volume increased 70% in the fourth quarter of 2023 and solidified our ranking as the #1 Fannie Mae Lender in 2023 for the fifth consecutive year. We ended the year as the #3 Freddie Mac Optigo Lender and the second largest combined GSE lender in the country.
• The 70% increase in HUD debt financing volumes reflected our strongest quarter of the year amidst high interest rates and elongated processing times, which impacted our overall HUD pipeline throughout the year.
• The decrease in brokered debt and property sales volume was driven by higher interest rates, decreased liquidity supplied to the commercial real estate sector, and dramatically lower acquisition and capital markets activity as the commercial real estate industry continues to adjust to this macroeconomic environment.

Discussion of Results:

• Our servicing portfolio continues to expand as a result of the additional GSE debt financing volumes over the past 12 months, partially offset by principal paydowns and loan payoffs.
• During the fourth quarter of 2023, we added $1.5 billion of net loans to our servicing portfolio, and over the past 12 months, we added $7.3 billion of net loans to our servicing portfolio, 82% of which were Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac loans.
• $10.2 billion of Agency loans in our servicing portfolio are scheduled to mature over the next two years. These loans, with a low weighted-average servicing fee of 19 basis points, represent only 9% of our total Agency loans in the portfolio.
• The mortgage servicing rights (“MSRs”) associated with our servicing portfolio had a fair value of $1.4 billion as of both December 31, 2023 and 2022.
• Assets under management as of December 31, 2023 consisted of $15.1 billion of LIHTC, $1.4 billion of debt funds, and $0.9 billion of equity funds. The $0.6 billion increase is due to increased syndication activity of tax credit funds and the closing of Fund VII at Walker & Dunlop Investment Partners (“WDIP”).

Discussion of Results:

• The decrease in Walker & Dunlop net income was the result of a 17% decrease in income from operations and an increase in our effective tax rate due to a one-time benefit in 2022.
• The decrease in adjusted EBITDA was primarily the result of lower investment management fees, from a decline in disposition activity due to the challenging market, largely offset by increased placement fees and other interest income and lower personnel expenses.
• Operating margin decreased due to the decline in total transaction volume that lowered income from operations. Our transaction-related businesses are scaled to execute a significantly larger volume of business, and lower commercial real estate transaction activity continues to put downward pressure on our operating margins.
• Return on equity declined primarily due to the 24% decrease in net income combined with a 2% increase in stockholders’ equity over the past year.
• Personnel expenses as a percentage of total revenues decreased to 46%, driven by the impact of our workforce reduction that became effective in May of 2023 and decreased variable compensation costs for our production team.
• Other operating expenses as a percentage of total revenues increased as a result of a $13.5 million benefit from contingent consideration liability fair value adjustments and no goodwill impairment in the fourth quarter of 2022. In the fourth quarter of 2023, there was goodwill impairment that substantially offset the contingent consideration liability fair value adjustments.

Discussion of Results:

• Our at-risk servicing portfolio, which is comprised of loans subject to a defined risk-sharing formula, increased primarily due to the level of Fannie Mae loans added to the portfolio during the past 12 months. As of December 31, 2023, three at-risk loans were in default with an aggregate UPB of $27.2 million compared to two at-risk loans with an aggregate UPB of $37.0 million that were in default as of December 31, 2022. The collateral-based reserve on defaulted loans was $2.8 million and $4.4 million as of December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively. The at-risk servicing portfolio continues to exhibit strong credit quality, with very low levels of delinquencies and strong operating performance of the underlying properties in the portfolio.
• The on-balance sheet interim loan portfolio, which is comprised of loans for which we have full risk of loss, was $40.1 million as of December 31, 2023 compared to $206.8 million as of December 31, 2022. We did not have any defaulted loans in our interim loan portfolio as of December 31, 2023, compared to one defaulted loan of $14.7 million in our interim loan portfolio as of December 31, 2022. During 2023, we sold the defaulted asset. One of the two remaining loans in the on-balance sheet interim loan portfolio is current and performing as of December 31, 2023. The other loan, with an unpaid principal balance of $14.2 million, matured in December 2023, and the sponsor is in process of refinancing the loan. We do not expect any loss from this loan. The interim loan joint venture held $710.0 million of loans as of December 31, 2023 and $892.8 million of loans as of December 31, 2022. We share in a small portion of the risk of loss, and, as of December 31, 2023, all loans in the interim loan joint venture are current and performing.
• We take credit risk exclusively on loans backed by multifamily assets and have no credit exposure to losses in any other sector of the commercial real estate lending market.

FOURTH QUARTER 2023 – FINANCIAL RESULTS BY SEGMENT

Interest expense on corporate debt is determined at a consolidated corporate level and allocated to each segment proportionally based on each segment’s use of that corporate debt.

Income tax expense is determined at a consolidated corporate level and allocated to each segment proportionally based on each segment’s income from operations, except for significant, one-time tax activities, which are allocated entirely to the segment impacted by the tax activity.

The following details explain the changes in these expense items at a consolidated corporate level:

• Interest expense on corporate debt increased $6.5 million or 54% from the fourth quarter of 2022 to the fourth quarter of 2023 due to increases in (i) the interest rate as our corporate debt’s floating rate is tied to short-term interest rates, (ii) the outstanding principal balance of corporate debt.
• Income tax expense increased $0.8 million or 8% from the fourth quarter of 2022 to the fourth quarter of 2023 primarily as a result of a decrease in realizable excess tax benefits and a one-time tax benefit during 2022 related to the GeoPhy acquisition, partially offset by a 17% decrease in income from operations.

Capital Markets – Discussion of Quarterly Results:

The Capital Markets segment includes our Agency lending, debt brokerage, property sales, appraisal and valuation services, and housing market research businesses.

• The decrease in origination fees was primarily the result of a decrease in our overall debt financing volume, partially offset by an increase in the origination fee margin due to an increase in Agency debt financing volume as a percentage of overall debt financing volume from 44% in the fourth quarter of 2022 to 52% in the fourth quarter of 2023.
• The increase in MSR income was attributable to the increase in the Agency MSR margin shown above due to an increase in Fannie Mae volume as a percentage of Agency debt financing volume, which increased the estimated fair value of the future cash flows, partially offset by a decrease in Agency debt financing volume.
• The decrease in property sales broker fees was primarily driven by the decrease in transaction activity and a decline in the profitability of the sales.
• The decrease in net warehouse interest income was driven by an inverted yield curve during the fourth quarter of 2023. Short-term interest rates upon which we incur interest expense were higher than the long-term mortgage rates upon which we earn interest income.
• The increase in other revenues is primarily related to an increase in investment banking revenues year over year.
• Personnel expense decreased primarily due to decreases in (i) commissions expense as a result of the decline in origination fees and property sales broker fees and (ii) salaries and bonuses due to the workforce reduction in the second quarter of 2023.
• The goodwill impairment in the fourth quarter of 2023 was due to market conditions leading to lower projected cash flows from the GeoPhy acquisition, compared to no impairment in 2022.
• In the fourth quarter of 2023, the fair value adjustment to contingent consideration liabilities resulted in a $48.5 million benefit compared to an $18.0 million benefit in the fourth quarter of 2022 due to a reduction in forecasted cash flows for the contingent consideration liability related to our 2022 acquisition of GeoPhy.
• The decrease in adjusted EBITDA was due to the decreases in origination fees, property sales broker fees, and net warehouse interest income (expense), partially offset by the increase in other revenues, the decrease in personnel expenses and the decrease in other operating expenses.

Servicing & Asset Management – Discussion of Quarterly Results:

The Servicing & Asset Management segment includes loan servicing, principal lending and investing, management of third-party capital invested in tax credit equity funds focused on the affordable housing sector and other commercial real estate, and real estate-related investment banking and advisory services.

• The $7.3 billion net increase in the servicing portfolio over the past 12 months was the principal driver of the growth in servicing fees year over year, partially offset by a slight decrease in the servicing portfolio’s weighted-average servicing fee.
• Investment management fees decreased as a result of lower dispositions revenue from our LIHTC funds. As tax credit investments in our managed portfolio mature, they are sold or recapitalized. The disruption in the acquisitions market and tighter liquidity led to a slowdown in disposition activity year over year.
• Placement fees and other interest income increased largely as a result of higher placement fees from escrow deposits due to substantially higher short-term interest rates.
• The increase in personnel expense was primarily the result of increases in salaries and benefits and commission costs. The aforementioned workforce reduction did not have a material impact on this segment given the stability in earnings and operations. Commission expense increased primarily due to an increase in syndication fees from higher annual syndication volumes in 2023 compared to 2022.
• The change in fair value adjustments to contingent consideration liabilities was primarily due to a contingent consideration revaluation related to Alliant in the fourth quarter of 2022 with no comparable activity in the fourth quarter of 2023.
• Other operating expenses increased primarily as a result of elevated professional fees, due to increased syndication activity. Much of the professional fees incurred from the syndication activity are reimbursable from the LIHTC funds.
• Adjusted EBITDA decreased primarily due to the decrease in investment management fees.

Corporate – Discussion of Quarterly Results:

The Corporate segment consists of corporate-level activities including accounting, information technology, legal, human resources, marketing, internal audit, and various other corporate groups (“support functions”). The Company does not allocate costs from these support functions to its other segments in presenting segment operating results.

• The increase in total revenues was primarily driven by the increase in interest income from our corporate cash balances due to higher short-term interest rates, combined with an increase in average balances held in interest earning accounts. Additionally, other revenues, which primarily consist of gains and losses on equity-method investments, shifted from a loss in the fourth quarter of 2022 to a gain in the fourth quarter of 2023 due to improved performance of several equity-method investments.
• The increase in personnel expense was related to an increase in subjective bonuses, partially offset by small decreases in other personnel expenses. Subjective bonuses were reduced for company performance in the fourth quarter of 2022 by a greater amount than the fourth quarter of 2023.
• The decrease in other operating expenses was the result of our cost-reduction initiatives in 2023.

CONSOLIDATED FULL YEAR 2023 OPERATING RESULTS

Discussion of Full Year Results:

• The decrease in total transaction volume was driven by declines in every type of execution, including a 29% decrease in Agency debt financing volume and a 55% decrease in both brokered debt financing volume and property sales volume.
• The decrease in Walker & Dunlop net income was primarily driven by the decreased transaction volume.
• The 8% decrease in adjusted EBITDA was primarily the result of (i) lower fee income from the decline in total transaction volumes, (ii) decreases in investment management fees from lower LIHTC dispositions, and (iii) a decrease net warehouse interest income due to an inverted yield curve.

Contacts

Investors:

Kelsey Duffey

Senior Vice President, Investor Relations
Phone 301.202.3207

[email protected]

Media:

Carol McNerney

Chief Marketing Officer
Phone 301.215.5515

[email protected]

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