Executive Summary
Ladder Capital Corp reported a robust fourth quarter (Q4 2024) with strong top-line growth and solid profitability, underscored by a substantial YoY and QoQ improvement in revenue and gross margins. Revenue reached $121.163 million, up 108.3% year over year and 78.5% quarter over quarter, while gross profit rose to $101.838 million (gross margin ~84.05%). Operating income totaled $40.517 million and net income was $31.384 million, translating to an EPS of $0.25 and a net margin of approximately 25.9%. The company generated EBITDA of $91.451 million and an EBITDAR margin of about 0.755, reflecting a high-margin core earnings profile despite a heavy interest burden. However, free cash flow remained negative at $60.1 million for the period, driven by sizable working capital movements and active investing activity that weighed on cash generation.
Key Performance Indicators
QoQ: 78.49% | YoY:108.27%
QoQ: 97.76% | YoY:157.08%
QoQ: 60.18% | YoY:120.74%
Key Insights
Revenue: $121.163M, YoY +108.3%, QoQ +78.5%; Gross Profit: $101.838M, GM ~84.05%, YoY +157.1%, QoQ +97.8%; Operating Income: $40.517M, YoY +120.7%, QoQ +60.2%; Net Income: $31.384M, YoY +63.2%, QoQ +12.4%; EPS: $0.25, YoY +66.7%, QoQ +13.6%; EBITDA: $91.451M, EBITDAR Margin: 0.755; Net Margin: 25.9%; Dividend Yield: 2.06%; Debt to Capitalization: 0.673; Debt to Equity: 2.05; Cash and cash equivalents: ~$1.323B; Total assets: ~$4.846B; Net debt: ~$1.749B; Free cash flow: -$60.1M; Operating cash f...
Financial Highlights
Revenue: $121.163M, YoY +108.3%, QoQ +78.5%; Gross Profit: $101.838M, GM ~84.05%, YoY +157.1%, QoQ +97.8%; Operating Income: $40.517M, YoY +120.7%, QoQ +60.2%; Net Income: $31.384M, YoY +63.2%, QoQ +12.4%; EPS: $0.25, YoY +66.7%, QoQ +13.6%; EBITDA: $91.451M, EBITDAR Margin: 0.755; Net Margin: 25.9%; Dividend Yield: 2.06%; Debt to Capitalization: 0.673; Debt to Equity: 2.05; Cash and cash equivalents: ~$1.323B; Total assets: ~$4.846B; Net debt: ~$1.749B; Free cash flow: -$60.1M; Operating cash flow: -$60.1M; P/B: ~0.91; P/E: ~11.17; Dividend payout ratio: ~92%.
Income Statement
| Metric |
Value |
YoY Change |
QoQ Change |
| Revenue |
121.16M |
108.27% |
78.49% |
| Gross Profit |
101.84M |
157.08% |
97.76% |
| Operating Income |
40.52M |
120.74% |
60.18% |
| Net Income |
31.38M |
63.15% |
12.44% |
| EPS |
0.25 |
66.67% |
13.64% |
Key Financial Ratios
operatingProfitMargin
69.3%
operatingCashFlowPerShare
$-0.48
freeCashFlowPerShare
$-0.49
dividendPayoutRatio
92.1%
Management Commentary
No earnings call transcript was provided in the input. Consequently, dedicated transcript highlights could not be sourced.
Forward Guidance
There is no formal forward guidance disclosed in the provided data for QQ4 2024. Given the results, investors should monitor (i) loan origination volumes and pipeline in the Loans segment, (ii) performance of the Securities and Real Estate segments, (iii) debt maturities and funding costs in a rising-rate environment, and (iv) cash flow trajectory as working capital movements normalize. Management commentary, where available, would be critical to gauge expectations for 2025 originations, portfolio mix shifts, and potential balance sheet optimization. Potential catalysts include increased CRE loan demand, securitization activity, and any steps toward enhancing free cash flow generation without sacrificing dividend capacity.