U.S. Global Investors Reports Financial Results for the Third Quarter of 2020 Fiscal Year, with Updates on Airline ETF, Gold & Precious Metal ETF and Investment in Blockchain Crypto Mining

San Antonio, May 14, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- U.S. Global Investors, Inc. (NASDAQ: GROW) (the “Company”), a boutique registered investment advisory firm with longstanding experience in global markets and specialized sectors, today reported a net loss of $1.6 million, or a $0.11 per share loss, for the quarter ended March 31, 2020. That’s compared to net income of $779,000, or $0.05 per share, for the same three-month period a year earlier. The change is primarily due to unrealized investment losses in the current quarter compared to unrealized investment gains in the same quarter last year.

Operating loss from continuing operations for the quarter ended March 31, 2020, was $979,000, compared to a loss of $672,000 for the quarter ended March 31, 2019, an additional loss of $307,000. Total consolidated operating revenues for the quarter ended March 31, 2020, increased $57,000, or 7 percent, compared with the quarter ended March 31, 2019, due to higher average assets under management (“AUM”) in the ETFs and lower performance fees paid out. Total consolidated operating expenses for the current quarter increased $364,000, or 24 percent, compared with the same quarter in the prior year, primarily due to an increase in business development costs related to the increase in ETF assets during the current quarter.

Investment loss was $441,000 for the three months ended March 31, 2020, compared to investment income of $2.1 million for the three months ended March 31, 2019, a negative change of approximately $2.5 million. The negative change is primarily due to less unrealized gains on fair valued securities, primarily in HIVE Blockchain Technologies (“HIVE”), the Company’s primary strategy for exposure to cryptocurrencies and blockchain. The HIVE investment was valued at approximately $1.3 million at March 31, 2020, and had a cost of $2.4 million. There has been significant volatility in the market price of HIVE, which has materially impacted the investment’s value included on the balance sheet and unrealized gain (loss) recognized in investment income quarterly.

Total AUM of continuing operations as of period-end at March 31, 2020 were $665.1 million compared to $510.1 million at June 30, 2019, the Company’s prior fiscal year end, an increase of $155.0 million, or 30 percent. The increase in AUM is due to an increase in assets in the U.S. Global Jets ETF (“JETS”) (ticker JETS) that accelerated in the latter part of March 2020.