As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on October 20, 2020.

Registration No. 333-249225

 

 

 

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

 

 

Amendment No. 3

to

FORM S-1

REGISTRATION STATEMENT

UNDER

THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933

 

 

Guild Holdings Company

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

 

 

 

Delaware		6162		85-2453154
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)		(Primary Standard Industrial Classification Code Number)		(I.R.S. Employer Identification Number)

 

 

5887 Copley Drive

San Diego, California 92111

(858) 560-6330

(Address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code, of registrant’s principal executive offices)

 

 

Mary Ann McGarry

Chief Executive Officer

5887 Copley Drive

San Diego, California 92111

(858) 560-6330

(Name, address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code, of agent for service)

 

 

With copies to:

 

David E. Shapiro, Esq.		William J. Cernius, Esq.
Mark F. Veblen, Esq.		Lewis W. Kneib, Esq.
Mark A. Stagliano, Esq.		Latham & Watkins LLP
Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz		355 South Grand Avenue, Suite 100
51 West 52nd Street		Los Angeles, California 90071
New York, New York 10019 (212) 403-1000		(213) 485-1234

 

 

Approximate date of commencement of proposed sale to the public: As soon as practicable after the effective date of this Registration Statement.

If any of the securities being registered on this form are to be offered on a delayed or continuous basis pursuant to Rule 415 under the Securities Act of 1933, check the following box.  ☐

If this form is filed to register additional securities for an offering pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act, check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering.  ☐

If this form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to Rule 462(c) under the Securities Act, check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering.  ☐

If this form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to Rule 462(d) under the Securities Act, check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering.  ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

 

Large accelerated filer		☐		Accelerated filer		☐
Non-accelerated filer		☒		Smaller reporting company		☐
				Emerging growth company		☒

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act.  ☐

CALCULATION OF REGISTRATION FEE

 

Title of Each Class of Securities to Be Registered		Amount to be Registered(1)(2)		Proposed Maximum Offering Price Per Share(2)		Proposed Maximum Aggregate Offering Price(1)(2)		Amount of Registration Fee(3)
Class A common stock, par value $0.01 per share		9,775,000		$19.00		$185,725,000.00		$20,262.60

 

(1)	Estimated solely for the purpose of calculating the registration fee pursuant to Rule 457(a) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.

(2)	Includes offering price of any additional shares that the underwriters have the option to purchase, if any. See “Underwriting.”

(3)	Previously paid.

 

 

The registrant hereby amends this Registration Statement on such date or dates as may be necessary to delay its effective date until the registrant shall file a further amendment which specifically states that this Registration Statement shall thereafter become effective in accordance with Section 8(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 or until the Registration Statement shall become effective on such date as the Securities and Exchange Commission, acting pursuant to said Section 8(a), may determine.

 

 

The information in this preliminary prospectus is not complete and may be changed. We may not sell these securities until the registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission is effective. This preliminary prospectus is not an offer to sell nor does it seek an offer to buy these securities in any jurisdiction where the offer or sale is not permitted.

 

Subject to Completion, dated October 20, 2020

8,500,000 Shares

 

Guild Holdings Company

Class A Common Stock

 

 

This is the initial public offering of shares of Class A common stock of Guild Holdings Company. The selling stockholders identified in this prospectus are offering 8,500,000 shares of our Class A common stock. All of the shares of Class A common stock being sold in this offering are being sold by the selling stockholders. Guild will not receive any of the proceeds from the sale of the shares in this offering.

Prior to this offering, there has been no public market for our Class A common stock. We currently anticipate that the initial public offering price per share of our Class A common stock will be between $17.00 and $19.00 per share.

Following this offering, Guild Holdings Company will have two classes of authorized common stock. The Class A common stock offered hereby will have one vote per share. The Class B common stock will have 10 votes per share. McCarthy Capital Mortgage Investors, LLC (“MCMI”), an entity controlled by McCarthy Partners Management, LLC, a registered investment adviser (“McCarthy Partners” and, together with its affiliates, predecessors and the various funds it manages, including MCMI, “McCarthy Capital”), will hold 100% of our issued and outstanding Class B common stock after this offering and will control approximately 94.8% of the combined voting power of our outstanding common stock. As a result, MCMI will be able to control any action requiring the general approval of our stockholders, including the election of our Board of Directors, the adoption of amendments to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws and the approval of any merger or sale of substantially all of our assets.

We have applied to list our Class A common stock on the New York Stock Exchange (the “NYSE”) under the symbol “GHLD.”

We are an “emerging growth company,” as that term is used in the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012, and, under applicable Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) rules, we have elected to take advantage of certain reduced public company reporting requirements for this prospectus and future filings.

We will be a “controlled company” under the corporate governance rules for NYSE-listed companies and will be exempt from certain corporate governance requirements of such rules. See “Risk Factors—Risks Related to Our Organization and Structure,” “Management—Controlled Company” and “Principal and Selling Stockholders.”

 

 

Investing in our Class A common stock involves risks. See “Risk Factors” beginning on page 29 of this prospectus.

 

		Per Share				Total
Initial public offering price		$				$
Underwriting discounts and commissions(1)		$				$
Proceeds to selling stockholders, before expenses		$				$

 

(1)	See “Underwriting” for additional information regarding the underwriting discount and certain expenses payable to the underwriters.

The selling stockholders have granted the underwriters an over-allotment option for a period of 30 days to purchase up to an additional 1,275,000 shares of our Class A common stock.

At our request, the underwriters have reserved up to 425,000 shares of Class A common stock, or up to 5% of the shares of Class A common stock offered by this prospectus for sale, at the initial public offering price, to certain individuals associated with us. See “Underwriting—Reserved Share Program.”

Neither the SEC nor any state securities commission or other regulatory body has approved or disapproved of these securities or determined if this prospectus is truthful or complete. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.

The underwriters expect to deliver the shares of Class A common stock on or about                , 2020.

 

 

Wells Fargo Securities		BofA Securities		J.P. Morgan
		JMP Securities

Compass Point		C.L. King & Associates

The date of this prospectus is                , 2020

 

(1)	Average annual ROE from 2008 through 2019.

 

(2)	Share of total originations from 2007 through the twelve months ended June 30, 2020, based on Guild’s origination data and data from Inside Mortgage Finance.

 

(3)	Based on Guild’s annual net income and market share from 2008-2019.

 

(4)	Guild’s origination volume for the twelve months ended June 30, 2020.

 

(5)

Guild’s recapture rate for the twelve months ended June 30, 2020. Refinance recapture rate is equal to the total UPB of Guild’s clients that refinanced their mortgage with Guild in a given period, divided by the total UPB of the clients that refinanced their mortgage. This calculation excludes clients to whom Guild did not actively market due to contractual prohibitions or other business reasons.

 

(6)	Equal to the compound annual growth rate of Guild’s annual origination volume from 2007 through the twelve months ended June 30, 2020.

 

(7)	Average gain-on-sale margin from January 1, 2008 through June 30, 2020. Represents the components of loan origination fees and gain-on-sale of loans, net divided by total in-house origination to derive basis points.

 

(8)	Percent of Guild’s total origination volume that consisted of purchase mortgages for the five years ended December 31, 2019.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

PROSPECTUS SUMMARY			1
THE OFFERING			20
SUMMARY HISTORICAL CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL AND OPERATING DATA			23
RISK FACTORS			29
CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS			56
ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE			58
USE OF PROCEEDS			60
DIVIDEND POLICY			61
CAPITALIZATION			62
DILUTION			64
SELECTED HISTORICAL CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL AND OPERATING DATA			66
MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS			68
BUSINESS			111
MANAGEMENT			139
EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION			145
PRINCIPAL AND SELLING STOCKHOLDERS			154
CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS			157
DESCRIPTION OF CERTAIN INDEBTEDNESS			160
DESCRIPTION OF CAPITAL STOCK			162
SHARES ELIGIBLE FOR FUTURE SALE			169
MATERIAL U.S. FEDERAL INCOME TAX CONSIDERATIONS FOR NON-U.S. HOLDERS OF CLASS A COMMON STOCK			172
UNDERWRITING			175
LEGAL MATTERS			182
EXPERTS			182
WHERE YOU CAN FIND MORE INFORMATION			182
INDEX TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS			F-1

 

 

Through and including                , 2020 (the 25th day after the date of this prospectus), all dealers effecting transactions in these securities, whether or not participating in this offering, may be required to deliver a prospectus. This is in addition to a dealer’s obligation to deliver a prospectus when acting as an underwriter and with respect to an unsold allotment or subscription.

We and the selling stockholders have not, and the underwriters have not, authorized anyone to provide any information, other than the information contained in this prospectus or in any free writing prospectuses we have prepared, or to make any representations to you. We, the selling stockholders and the underwriters take no responsibility for, and can provide no assurance as to the reliability of, any other information that others may give you. You must not rely on any unauthorized information or representations. This prospectus is an offer to sell only the shares of our Class A common stock offered hereby by the selling stockholders and only under circumstances and in jurisdictions where it is lawful to do so. The information contained in this prospectus is current only as of its date, regardless of the time of delivery of this prospectus or of any sale of our Class A common stock. Our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects may have changed since that date.

For investors outside of the United States: We and the selling stockholders have not, and the underwriters have not, done anything that would permit this offering or possession or distribution of this prospectus or any free writing prospectus we may provide to you in connection with this offering in any jurisdiction where action for that purpose is required, other than in the United States. You are required to

 

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inform yourselves about and to observe any restrictions relating to this offering and the distribution of this prospectus and any such free writing prospectus outside of the United States.

INDUSTRY AND OTHER DATA

Certain industry data and market data included in this prospectus were obtained from independent third-party surveys, market research, publicly available information, reports of governmental agencies and industry publications and surveys. Except as otherwise specified, such data is derived from Inside Mortgage Finance Publications, Inc. Copyright ^© 2020 Used with permission, Mortgage Bankers Association, Ellie Mae, STRATMOR Group, CoreLogic and the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Information and data derived from the Mortgage Bankers Association and STRATMOR Peer Group Roundtables Program (Spring 2020), large independent mortgage lenders peer set, includes participating independent mortgage lenders with more than $5 billion of origination volume during the year ended December 31, 2019. Not all independent mortgage lenders of that size may be included in the peer set. Information and data derived from the Mortgage Bankers Association 2020 Servicing Operations Study (2019 data), mid-size independent mortgage servicers and banks peer set, includes participating independent mortgage servicers and banks with servicing portfolios of less than 700,000 loans as of December 31, 2019. Not all independent mortgage servicers and banks servicing portfolios of that size may be included in the peer set. Management’s estimates presented herein are based upon management’s review of independent third-party surveys and industry publications prepared by a number of sources and other publicly available information. All of the industry data, market data and related estimates used in this prospectus involve a number of assumptions and limitations, and you are cautioned not to give undue weight to such data and estimates. Although we have no reason to believe that the information from these surveys and industry publications included in this prospectus is not reliable, we have not independently verified this information and cannot guarantee its accuracy or completeness. In addition, we believe that industry data, market data and related estimates provide general guidance but are inherently imprecise. The industry in which we operate is subject to a high degree of uncertainty and risk due to a variety of factors, including those described in the section titled “Risk Factors.” These and other factors could cause results to differ materially from those expressed in the estimates made by independent parties and by us.

TRADEMARKS AND TRADE NAMES

Our logo and any trade names of Guild appearing in this prospectus are our property. This prospectus also contains trademarks and trade names of other companies, which are the property of their respective owners. Solely for convenience, trademarks and trade names referred to in this prospectus may appear without the ^® or ^™ symbols, but such references are not intended to indicate, in any way, that we will not assert, to the fullest extent under applicable law, our rights or the rights of the applicable licensor to these trademarks and trade names.

ASSUMPTIONS AND EXCLUSIONS

Except as otherwise noted, all information in this prospectus (including, but not limited to, the number of shares of our Class A common stock and shares of our Class B common stock to be outstanding after the completion of this offering) assumes:

 

•

the occurrence of the “reorganization transactions” described in the section of this prospectus entitled “Organizational Structure”;

 

•

that the underwriters do not exercise their option to purchase up to 1,275,000 additional shares from the selling stockholders;

 

•

an initial public offering price of $18.00 per share (the midpoint of the estimated public offering price range set forth on the front cover of this prospectus);

 

ii

•

the filing and effectiveness of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation (“certificate of incorporation”) and amended and restated bylaws (“bylaws”) upon the closing of this offering;

 

•

the exclusion of 1,200,278 shares of our Class A common stock (subject to adjustment for fractional shares) we expect to issue pursuant to restricted stock units we intend to grant in connection with this offering under our 2020 Omnibus Incentive Plan (the “2020 Plan”), which we plan to adopt in connection with this offering, based on the midpoint of the estimated price range set forth on the front cover of this prospectus; and

 

•

the exclusion of 4,299,722 additional shares of our Class A common stock (subject to adjustment for fractional shares) that will remain available for issuance pursuant to future awards under our 2020 Plan based on the midpoint of the estimated price range set forth on the front cover of this prospectus.

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND BASIS OF PRESENTATION

Unless otherwise indicated or the context otherwise requires, references in this prospectus to (i) the “Issuer” refer to Guild Holdings Company, a Delaware corporation, and the issuer of the shares of our Class A common stock offered hereby and (ii) “Guild Mortgage Co.” refer to Guild Mortgage Company, a California corporation, our operating company prior to this offering and an entity that will become a wholly owned subsidiary of the Issuer in connection with the reorganization transactions described in this prospectus. The Issuer was formed as a Delaware corporation on August 11, 2020 and, prior to the consummation of the reorganization transactions and this offering, did not conduct any activities other than those incidental to our formation and this offering.

Prior to the consummation of the reorganization transactions and in reference to events which took place prior to the consummation of the reorganization transactions, unless the context requires otherwise, the words “Guild,” “we,” the “Company,” “us,” and “our” refer to Guild Mortgage Company, a California corporation, and its consolidated subsidiaries. Subsequent to the consummation of the reorganization transactions and in reference to events which are to take place subsequent to the consummation of the reorganization transactions, unless the context requires otherwise, the words “Guild,” “we,” the “Company,” “us,” and “our” refer to Guild Holdings Company, a Delaware corporation, and its consolidated subsidiaries. Prior to the consummation of the reorganization transactions, Guild was a wholly owned subsidiary of Guild Mortgage Company, LLC, a California limited liability company, which changed its name to Guild Investors, LLC, on September 22, 2020. This prospectus refers to that former parent entity, both before and after such name change, as “Guild Investors, LLC.” See “Organizational Structure” for additional information.

All financial information presented in this prospectus is derived from the consolidated financial statements of Guild Mortgage Co. included elsewhere in this prospectus. All financial information presented in this prospectus has been prepared in U.S. dollars in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America (“GAAP”), except for the presentation of the following non-GAAP measures: Adjusted Net Income, Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted Return on Equity. See “Selected Historical Consolidated Financial and Operating Data—Non-GAAP Financial Measures” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Non-GAAP Financial Measures” in this prospectus for further information regarding our use of these non-GAAP financial measures, including limitations related to such measures, and a reconciliation of such measures to the nearest comparable financial measures calculated and presented in accordance with GAAP.

 

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Reconciliation of Net Income (Loss) to Adjusted EBITDA ($ in thousands)		Six Months Ended June 30,								Years ended December 31,
		2020				2019				2019				2018
Net income (loss)		$	110,781			$	(46,998	)		$	5,577			$	73,333
Add adjustments:
Interest expense on non-funding debt			4,291				4,603				8,980				7,019
Income tax provision			36,465				(15,389	)			253				24,260
Depreciation and amortization			3,146				3,824				7,333				7,180
Change in fair value of MSRs due to model inputs and assumptions			151,080				130,734				171,398				(26,178	)
Change in fair value of contingent liabilities due to acquisitions			20,025				3,054				7,920				(2,642	)
Adjusted EBITDA		$	325,788			$	79,828			$	201,461			$	82,972

 

Adjusted Return on Equity Calculation ($ in thousands, except where in percentages)		Six Months Ended June 30,								Twelve Months Ended June 30,								Years ended December 31,
		2020				2019				2020				2019				2019				2018
Numerator: Adjusted Net Income		$	238,168			$	52,607			$	324,640			$	79,910			$	139,079			$	51,877
Denominator: Average stockholder’s equity			456,422				407,199				440,134				410,287				423,486				429,244
Adjusted Return on Equity(1)			104.4	%			25.8	%			73.8	%			19.5	%			32.8	%			12.1	%
Return on equity(2)			48.5	%			(23.1	)%			37.1	%			(8.1	)%			1.3	%			17.1	%

 

(1)	For the six months ended June 30, 2020 and June 30, 2019, Adjusted Return on Equity is shown on an annualized basis.

(2)	For the six months ended June 30, 2020 and June 30, 2019, return on equity is shown on an annualized basis.

 

Reconciliation of Net Income (Loss) to Adjusted Net Income (in thousands)		Three Months Ended September 30,												Nine Months Ended September 30,
		2020								2019				2020								2019
		Low				High				(Actual)				Low				High				(Actual)
Net income (loss)		$	178,000			$	187,000			$	8,496			$	286,000			$	301,000			$	(38,502	)
Add adjustments:
Change in fair value of MSRs due to model inputs and assumptions			9,000				10,000				63,062				157,000				165,000				194,104
Change in fair value of contingent liabilities due to acquisitions			6,000				7,000				4,222				26,000				27,000				7,276
Tax impact of adjustments			(4,000	)			(4,000	)			(17,157	)			(47,000	)			(49,000	)			(51,352	)
Adjusted Net Income		$	189,000			$	200,000			$	58,623			$	422,000			$	444,000			$	111,526

 

 

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Reconciliation of Net Income (Loss) to Adjusted EBITDA (in thousands)		Three Months Ended September 30,												Nine Months Ended September 30,
		2020								2019				2020								2019
		Low				High				(Actual)				Low				High				(Actual)
Net income (loss)		$	178,000			$	187,000			$	8,496			$	286,000			$	301,000			$	(38,502	)
Add adjustments:
Interest expense on non-funding debt			2,000				2,000				2,194				6,000				7,000				6,797
Income tax provision			62,000				65,000				(2,661	)			98,000				103,000				(18,050	)
Depreciation and amortization			2,000				2,000				1,812				5,000				5,000				5,636
Change in fair value of MSRs due to model inputs and assumptions			9,000				10,000				63,062				157,000				165,000				194,104
Change in fair value of contingent liabilities due to acquisitions			6,000				7,000				4,222				26,000				27,000				7,276
Adjusted EBITDA		$	259,000			$	273,000			$	77,125			$	578,000			$	608,000			$	157,261

 

Adjusted Return on Equity Calculation (in thousands, except where in percentages)		Three Months Ended September 30,												Nine Months Ended September 30,
		2020								2019				2020								2019
		Low				High				(Actual)				Low				High				(Actual)
Numerator: Adjusted Net Income		$	189,000			$	200,000			$	58,623			$	422,000			$	444,000			$	111,526
Denominator: Average stockholder’s equity			595,812				600,312				377,704				544,031				551,531				411,446
Adjusted Return on Equity(1)			127	%			133	%			62	%			103	%			107	%			36	%
Return on equity(2)			120	%			125	%			9	%			70	%			73	%			(12	)%

 

(1)	For the three months ended September 30, 2020 and September 30, 2019 and the nine months ended September 30, 2020 and September 30, 2019, Adjusted Return on Equity is shown on an annualized basis.

(2)	For the three months ended September 30, 2020 and September 30, 2019 and the nine months ended September 30, 2020 and September 30, 2019, return on equity is shown on an annualized basis.

 

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The following table reconciles the valuation adjustment of mortgage servicing rights from the Company’s consolidated statements of income to the change in fair value of MSRs due to model inputs and assumptions included in the reconciliation tables above.

 

Reconciliation of valuation adjustment of mortgage servicing rights to change in fair value of MSRs due to model inputs and assumptions ($ in thousands)		Six Months Ended June 30,								Twelve Months Ended June 30,								Year ended December 31,
		2020				2019				2020				2019				2019				2018
Valuation adjustment of mortgage servicing rights		$	(204,810	)		$	(160,222	)		$	(299,807	)		$	(203,842	)		$	(255,219	)		$	(17,050	)
Subtract adjustment:
Change in fair value of MSRs due to collection/realization of cash flows			(53,730	)			(29,488	)			(108,063	)			(51,826	)			(83,821	)			(43,228	)
Change in fair value of MSRs due to model inputs and assumptions		$	(151,080	)		$	(130,734	)		$	(191,744	)		$	(152,016	)		$	(171,398	)		$	26,178

 

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RISK FACTORS

Investing in our Class A common stock involves risks. You should carefully consider the risks and uncertainties described below, together with all of the other information included in this prospectus, including the financial statements and the related notes appearing at the end of this prospectus, before deciding to invest in our Class A common stock. Our business, financial condition, operating results, cash flow and prospects could be materially and adversely affected by any of these risks or uncertainties. In that case, the trading price of our Class A common stock could decline, and you could lose all or part of your investment. The risks and uncertainties described below are not the only ones we face. Additional risks and uncertainties that we are unaware of or that we currently see as immaterial may also adversely affect our business. Some statements in this prospectus, including statements included in the following risk factors, constitute forward-looking statements. Please refer to “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements.”

Risks Related to Our Business

The COVID-19 pandemic has had, and will likely continue to have, an adverse effect on our business, and its ultimate effect on our business and financial results will depend on future developments, which are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted, including the scope and duration of the pandemic and actions taken or to be taken by government authorities in response to the pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic has negatively affected, and continues to negatively affect, the national economy and the local economies in the communities in which we operate and has created unprecedented economic, financial and health disruptions that have, and will likely continue to have, an adverse effect on our business. The pandemic has also caused significant volatility and disruption in the financial markets. In the event of a prolonged economic downturn or other economic disruption or changes in the broader economy, housing market, debt markets or otherwise, real estate transactions, the volume of mortgages we originate and the value of the homes that serve as collateral for the loans that we service may decrease significantly.

The COVID-19 pandemic is also affecting our mortgage servicing operations. The federal government enacted the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (the “CARES Act”), which allows borrowers with federally backed loans to request a temporary mortgage forbearance. As a result of the CARES Act forbearance requirements, we have recorded, and expect to record additional, increases in delinquencies in our servicing portfolio, which may require us to finance substantial amounts of advances of principal and interest, property taxes, insurance premiums and other expenses to protect investors’ interests in the properties securing the loans. We expect that a borrower who has experienced a loss of employment or a reduction of income may not repay the forborne payments at the end of the forbearance period, or at all. Additionally, we are prohibited from collecting certain servicing-related fees, such as late fees, and initiating foreclosure proceedings. As a result, we expect the effects of the CARES Act forbearance requirements to reduce our servicing income, increase our servicing expenses and require significant cash outlays.

The COVID-19 pandemic may also affect our liquidity. We fund substantially all of the mortgage loans we close through borrowings under our loan funding facilities. Given the broad impact of COVID-19 on the financial markets, our future ability to borrow money to fund our current and future loan production and other cash needs is unknown. Our mortgage origination liquidity could also be affected if our lenders curtail access to uncommitted mortgage warehouse financing capacity or impose higher costs to access such capacity. Our liquidity may be further constrained as there may be less demand by investors to acquire our mortgage loans in the secondary market. In addition, we may be required to use significant amounts of cash to fund advances for loans subject to forbearance requirements or that are delinquent.

Our business operations may also be disrupted if significant portions of our workforce are unable to work effectively, including because of illness, quarantines, government actions or other restrictive measures in connection with the pandemic. As a result of the pandemic, a significant portion of our

 

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employees have been working remotely. Although some government authorities were in varying stages of lifting or modifying some of these measures, some have already, and others may in the future, reinstitute these measures or impose new, more restrictive measures, if the risks, or the perception of the risks, related to the COVID-19 pandemic worsen at any time. Such restrictive measures could also slow certain aspects of our operations that depend on third parties such as appraisers, closing agents and others for loan-related verifications.

The extent to which the COVID-19 pandemic impacts our business, results of operations, and financial condition will ultimately depend on future developments, which are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted, including the scope and duration of the pandemic and actions taken by governmental authorities and other third parties in response to the pandemic.

A disruption in the secondary home loan market or our ability to sell the loans that we originate could have a detrimental effect on our business.

Demand in the secondary market for home loans and our ability to sell the mortgages that we originate depends on many factors that are beyond our control, including general economic conditions, the willingness of lenders to provide funding for and purchase home loans and changes in regulatory requirements. Our inability to sell the mortgages that we originate in the secondary market in a timely manner and on favorable terms could be detrimental to our business. In particular, we sell the majority of the mortgages that we originate to Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Ginnie Mae, and the gain recognized from these sales represents a significant portion of our revenues and net earnings. If it is not possible or economical for us to continue selling mortgages to the GSEs, or other loan purchasers, our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected.

Macroeconomic and U.S. residential real estate market conditions could materially and adversely affect our revenue and results of operations.

Our business has been, and will continue to be, affected by a number of factors that are beyond our control, including the health of the U.S. residential real estate industry, which is seasonal, cyclical, and affected by changes in general economic conditions, including the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Furthermore, our clients’ and potential clients’ income, and thus their ability and willingness to make home purchases and mortgage payments, may be negatively affected by macroeconomic factors such as unemployment, wage deflation, changes in property values and taxes and the availability and cost of credit. As a result, these macroeconomic factors can adversely affect our origination volume.

Increased delinquencies could also increase the cost of servicing existing mortgages and could be detrimental to our business. Lower servicing fees could result in decreased cash flow, and also could decrease the estimated value of our MSRs, resulting in recognition of losses when we write down those values. In addition, an increase in delinquencies lowers the interest income we receive on cash held in collection and other accounts and increases our obligation to advance certain principal, interest, tax and insurance obligations owed by the delinquent mortgage loan borrower.

We highly depend on certain U.S. government-sponsored entities and government agencies, and any changes in these entities or their current roles could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

A substantial portion of the loans we originate are loans eligible for sale to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and government insured or guaranteed loans, such as loans backed by the FHA, the VA and the USDA eligible for Ginnie Mae securities issuance. The future of the GSEs, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, is uncertain, including with respect to how long they will continue to be in existence, the extent of their roles in the market and what forms they will have, and whether they will be government agencies, government-sponsored agencies or private for-profit entities. If the operation of the GSEs is discontinued or reduced, if there is a significant change in their capital structure, financial condition, activity levels or roles in the

 

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primary or secondary mortgage markets or in their underwriting criteria or if we lose approvals with those agencies or our relationships with those agencies is otherwise adversely affected, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be adversely affected.

Changes in prevailing interest rates or U.S. monetary policies may have a detrimental effect on our business. Our hedging strategies may not be successful in mitigating interest rate risk.

Our profitability is directly affected by changes in interest rates. The market value of closed loans held for sale and interest rate locks generally change along with interest rates. As such, volatility in prevailing interest rates may have a detrimental effect on our financial performance and results of operations. Many factors beyond our control impact interest rates, including economic conditions, governmental monetary policies, inflation, recession, changes in unemployment, the money supply, and disorder and instability in domestic and foreign financial markets. Changes in monetary policies of U.S. government agencies could influence not only consumer demand for mortgages but also the fair value of our financial assets and liabilities.

We pursue hedging strategies to mitigate our exposure to adverse changes in interest rates, including with respect to loans held for sale and interest rate locks. Hedging interest rate risk, however, is a complex process, requiring sophisticated models and constant monitoring, and is not a perfect science. Due to interest rate fluctuations, hedged assets and liabilities will appreciate or depreciate in market value. The effect of this unrealized appreciation or depreciation will generally be offset by income or loss on the derivative instruments that are linked to the hedged assets and liabilities. If we engage in derivative transactions, we will be exposed to credit and market risk. If the counterparty fails to perform, counterparty risk exists to the extent of the fair value gain in the derivative. Interest rate risk exists to the extent that interest rates change in ways that are significantly different from what we expected when we entered into the derivative transaction. In addition, we may not engage in hedging strategies with respect to all or a portion of our exposure to changes in interest rates at any given time, or may engage in hedging strategies to a degree or in a manner that is different from that of other companies in our industry. Failure to manage interest rate risk could have a material adverse effect on our business. See “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk.”

Our servicing rights are subject to termination with or without cause.

The servicing agreements under which we service mortgage loans for GSE and non-GSE loan purchasers require that we comply with certain servicing guidelines and abide by certain financial covenants. Under the terms of our master servicing agreements with the GSEs and non-GSEs that purchase the loans we originate, the loan purchasers generally retain the right to terminate us as servicer of the loans we service on their behalf, with or without cause. If we were to have our MSRs terminated on a material portion of our servicing portfolio, or if our costs related to servicing mortgages were increased by the way of additional fees, fines or penalties or an increase in related compliance costs, this could materially and adversely affect our business.

Our existing and any future indebtedness could adversely affect our ability to operate our business, our financial condition or the results of our operations.

Our existing and any future indebtedness could have important consequences, including:

 

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requiring us to dedicate a substantial portion of our cash flow to payments on our indebtedness, which would reduce the amount of cash flow available to fund working capital, capital expenditures or other corporate purposes;

 

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increasing our vulnerability to general adverse economic, industry and market conditions;

 

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subjecting us to restrictive covenants that may reduce our ability to take certain corporate actions or obtain further debt or equity financing;

 

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limiting our ability to plan for and respond to business opportunities or changes in our business or industry; and

 

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placing us at a competitive disadvantage compared to our competitors that have less debt or better debt servicing options.

Failure to make payments or comply with other covenants under our existing debt instruments could result in an event of default. If an event of default occurs and the lender accelerates the amounts due, we may need to seek additional financing, which may not be available on acceptable terms, in a timely manner or at all. In that event, we may not be able to make accelerated payments, and the lender could seek to enforce security interests in the collateral securing such indebtedness, which includes substantially all of our assets.

Our mortgage loan origination and servicing activities rely on our loan funding facilities to fund mortgage loans and otherwise operate our business. If one or more of those facilities are terminated, we may be unable to find replacement financing at commercially favorable terms, or at all, which could be detrimental to our business.

We fund substantially all of the mortgage loans we close through borrowings under our loan funding facilities and funds generated by our operations. Our borrowings are in turn generally repaid with the proceeds we receive from mortgage loan sales. We currently, and may in the future continue to, depend upon a handful of lenders to provide the primary funding facilities for our loans. As of the date of this prospectus, we had seven warehouse lines of credit pursuant to master repurchase agreements, which provide us with an aggregate maximum borrowing capacity of approximately $2.9 billion. Additionally, as of June 30, 2020, we were party to (i) a term loan credit agreement with one of our warehouse banks, which agreement is collateralized by our Fannie Mae MSRs and provides for a term loan facility of $100.0 million (which can be increased to up to $150.0 million), (ii) a loan and security agreement with one of our warehouse banks, which agreement is collateralized by our Ginnie Mae MSRs and provides for a revolving facility of up to $135.0 million (which can be increased to up to $200.0 million) and (iii) a loan and security agreement with one of our warehouse banks, which agreement is collateralized by our Freddie Mac MSRs and provides for a revolving facility of up to $50.0 million.

In the event that any of our loan funding facilities is terminated or is not renewed, or if the principal amount that may be drawn under our funding agreements were to decrease significantly, we may be unable to find replacement financing on commercially favorable terms, or at all, which could be detrimental to our business. Further, if we are unable to refinance or obtain additional funds for borrowing, our ability to maintain or grow our business could be limited.

Our ability to refinance existing debt and borrow additional funds is affected by a variety of factors, including:

 

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limitations imposed under existing and future financing facilities that contain restrictive covenants and borrowing conditions that may limit our ability to raise additional debt;

 

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a decline in liquidity in the credit markets;

 

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prevailing interest rates;

 

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the financial strength of the lenders from whom we borrow;

 

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the decision of lenders from whom we borrow to reduce their exposure to mortgage loans due to a change in such lenders’ strategic plan, future lines of business or otherwise;

 

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the amount of eligible collateral pledged on advance facilities, which may be less than the borrowing capacity of the facility;

 

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the large portion of our loan funding facilities that is uncommitted;

 

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more stringent financial covenants in our refinanced facilities, with which we may not be able to comply; and

 

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accounting changes that impact calculations of covenants in our debt agreements.

If the refinancing or borrowing guidelines become more stringent and those changes result in increased costs to comply or decreased origination volume, those changes could be detrimental to our business.

Our loan funding facilities contain covenants that include certain financial requirements, including maintenance of maximum adjusted leverage ratio, minimum net worth, minimum tangible net worth, minimum current ratio, minimum liquidity, positive quarterly income and other customary debt covenants, as well as limitations on additional indebtedness, dividends, sales of assets, and declines in the mortgage loan servicing portfolio’s fair value. A breach of these covenants can result in an event of default under these facilities and as such allow the lenders to pursue certain remedies. In addition, our loan facilities include cross default or cross acceleration provisions that could result in most, if not all, facilities terminating if an event of default or acceleration of maturity occurs under a facility. If we are unable to meet or maintain the necessary covenant requirements or satisfy, or obtain waivers for, the continuing covenants, we may lose the ability to borrow under all of our financing facilities, which could be detrimental to our business.

Our business depends on our ability to maintain and improve the technology infrastructure that supports our origination and servicing platform, and any significant disruption in service on our platform could harm our business, brand, operating results, financial condition and prospects.

Our ability to service our clients depends on the reliable performance of our technology infrastructure. Interruptions, delays or failures in these systems, whether due to adverse weather conditions, natural disasters, power loss, computer viruses, cybersecurity attacks, physical break-ins, terrorism, hardware failures, errors in our software or otherwise, could be prolonged and could affect the security or availability of our platform and our ability to originate and service mortgages. Furthermore, we may incur significant expense maintaining, updating and adapting our technology infrastructure, and our disaster recovery planning may be insufficient to prevent or mitigate these and other events or occurrences. The reliability and security of our systems, and those of certain third parties, is important not only to facilitating our origination and servicing of mortgages, but also to maintaining our reputation and ensuring the proper protection of our confidential and proprietary information and the data of mortgage borrowers and other third parties that we possess or control or to which we have access. Operational failures or prolonged disruptions or delays in the availability of our systems could harm our business, brand, reputation, operating results, financial condition and prospects.

Our risk management strategies may not be fully effective in mitigating our risk exposures in all market environments or against all types of risk.

We have devoted significant resources to develop our risk management policies and procedures and expect to continue to do so in the future. Nonetheless, our risk management strategies may not be fully effective in mitigating our risk exposure in all market environments or against all types of risk, including market, interest rate, credit, liquidity, operational, cybersecurity, legal, regulatory and compliance risks, as well as other risks that we may not have identified or anticipated. As our products and services change and grow and the markets in which we operate evolve, our risk management strategies may not always adapt to those changes in a timely or effective manner. Some of our methods of managing risk are based upon our use of observed historical market behavior and management’s judgment. As a result, these methods may not predict future risk exposures, which could be different or significantly greater than the historical measures indicate. Although we employ a broad and diversified set of risk monitoring and risk mitigation techniques, those techniques and the judgments that accompany their application cannot anticipate every economic and financial outcome or the timing of such outcomes. Any of these circumstances could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

 

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Pressure from existing and new competitors may adversely affect our business, operating results, financial condition and prospects.

We operate in a highly competitive industry that could become even more competitive due to economic, legislative, regulatory and technological changes. We face significant competition for clients from bank and non-bank competitors, including national and regional banks, mortgage banking companies, financial technology companies and correspondent lenders. Many of our competitors are significantly larger and have significantly more resources, greater name recognition and more extensive and established retail footprints than we do.

Our ability to compete successfully will depend on a number of factors, including, among other things, our ability to build and maintain long-term client relationships while ensuring high ethical standards and sound lending and servicing practices, the scope, relevance and pricing of products and services that we offer, our clients’ satisfaction with our products and services, industry and general economic trends and our ability to keep pace with technological advances in the industry.

Our failure to compete effectively in our markets could restrain our growth or cause us to lose market share, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations. We may also face a competitive disadvantage as a result of our concentration in the northwest United States and will be unable, as compared to our more geographically diversified peers, to spread our operating costs across a broader market. Furthermore, a cyclical decline in the industry’s overall level of originations, or decreased demand for loans due to a higher interest rate environment, may lead to increased competition for remaining loan originations. Any increase in these competitive pressures could have an adverse effect on our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations.

Our failure to maintain or grow our historical referral relationships with our referral partners may materially and adversely affect our business, operating results, financial condition and prospects.

A substantial portion of our mortgage origination leads are sourced through an established network of referral partners with which we have longstanding relationships. We rely on being a preferred provider to realtors, builders and other partners with whom we have relationships. Our failure to maintain or grow these relationships could significantly decrease our origination volume and materially and adversely affect our business, operating results, financial condition and prospects. In addition, changes in the real estate and home construction industries, or in the relationships between those industries and the mortgage industry, could adversely affect our business and operating results, financial condition and prospects. For example, in recent years, there has been an increase in products and services designed to facilitate home sales without the involvement of realtors, and if the role of realtors in the sales process declines, our business could be adversely affected if we are unable to adapt to that development in a manner that preserves our loan origination leads.

If we are not able to continue the historical levels of growth in our market share in the mortgage origination and servicing industry, we may not be able to maintain our historical earnings trends.

Since 2007, Guild Mortgage Co. has consummated six acquisitions that significantly contributed to our growth, particularly in new geographies. We are currently pursuing a growth strategy focused on growing market share in existing markets, as well as expanding opportunistically into new markets. This strategy may not sustain our historical rate of growth or our ability to grow at all. Our ability to execute our growth strategy depends on a variety of factors, such as economic conditions and competition, which are beyond our control, and access to capital and liquidity to fund such growth. Our ability to execute our growth strategy also depends on our ability to identify attractive acquisition targets, execute such transactions in a timely manner and successfully integrate acquired businesses, and we may not be able to do so in the future. Future acquisitions may not provide the same benefit to us, or otherwise be as successful, as past acquisitions. In addition, we may issue equity in acquisition transactions, which would dilute our existing investors, and/or debt to finance such transactions, which would increase our leverage

 

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and expose us to additional risks relating to indebtedness. We may not be able to obtain the financing necessary to fund internal growth and we may not pursue growth through new acquisitions. Sustainable growth requires that we manage our risks by following prudent origination and servicing standards, hiring and retaining qualified loan officers and other employees, and successfully implementing strategic projects and initiatives. Our growth strategy may also change from time to time as a result of various internal and external factors. For example, natural disasters and other events beyond our control may also adversely affect our growth. If we are not able to continue our historical levels of growth, we may not be able to maintain these historical earnings trends. The absence of, or our inability to pursue and take advantage of, growth opportunities, or our inability to manage our growth successfully, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of our operations and prospects.

We may be adversely affected by a decline in our ability to recapture loans from borrowers who refinance.

The size of our servicing portfolio is subject to “run-off.” For example, mortgage loans we service may be repaid at maturity, prepaid prior to maturity, refinanced with a mortgage not serviced by us, liquidated through foreclosure, deed-in-lieu of foreclosure or other liquidation process, or repaid through standard amortization of principal. Due to this run-off, our ability to maintain the size of our servicing portfolio, and to generate new originations, depends in part on our ability to continue originating loans with respect to which we will maintain the servicing rights and recapturing loans from existing clients who are in the market to refinance. Clients who refinance their mortgages are not obligated to refinance their loans with us and may choose to do so with a different lender. If we are unsuccessful in maintaining or increasing our share of loan originations or in recapturing our existing loans that are refinanced, our servicing portfolio may become increasingly subject to run-off and/or our loan originations may decline. This could adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.

We are required to make servicing advances that can be subject to delays in recovery or may not be recoverable in certain circumstances.

During any period in which our clients are not making payments on loans we service, including during defaults, delinquencies, forbearances and in certain circumstances where a client prepays a loan, we generally are required under our servicing agreements to advance our own funds to pay principal and interest, property taxes and insurance premiums, legal expenses and other expenses. In addition, in the event a loan serviced by us defaults or becomes delinquent, or to the extent a mortgagee under such loan is allowed to enter into a forbearance by applicable law or regulation, the repayment to us of any advance related to such events may be delayed until the loan is repaid or refinanced or liquidation occurs. Any delay or impairment in our ability to collect an advance may materially and adversely affect our liquidity, and delays in reimbursements of us, or our inability to be reimbursed, for advances could be detrimental to our business. Market disruptions such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the response, including through the CARES Act and the temporary period of forbearance that is being offered for clients unable to pay on certain mortgage loans as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as any extension or expansion of such periods of forbearance or similar or additional actions, may also increase the number of defaults, delinquencies or forbearances related to the loans we service, increasing the advances we make for such loans, which we may not recover in a timely manner or at all. In addition, any regulatory actions that lengthen the foreclosure process could increase the amount of servicing advances that we are required to make, lengthen the time it takes for us to be reimbursed for such advances and increase the costs incurred during the foreclosure process. While we have in the past utilized prepayments and payoffs to make advances, such sources, and other sources of liquidity available to us, may not be sufficient in the future, and our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected as a result of required advances. As of August 31, 2020, loans representing approximately 4.7% of the loans in our servicing portfolio were in forbearance.

 

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If we are unable to attract, integrate and retain qualified personnel, our ability to develop and successfully grow our business could be harmed.

Our business depends on our ability to retain our key executives and management and to hire, develop and retain qualified loan officers and other employees. Our ability to expand our business depends on our being able to hire, train and retain sufficient numbers of employees to staff our in-house servicing centers, as well as other personnel. Our success in recruiting highly skilled and qualified personnel can depend on factors outside of our control, including the strength of the general economy and local employment markets and the availability of alternative forms of employment. Furthermore, the spread of COVID-19 may adversely affect our ability to recruit and retain personnel. If the services of any of our key personnel should become unavailable for any reason, we may not be able to identify and hire qualified persons on terms acceptable to us, which could have a material and adverse effect on our business, operating results, financial condition and prospects.

We may acquire other businesses or technologies, which could divert our management’s attention, result in additional dilution to our stockholders and otherwise disrupt our operations and harm our operating results, financial condition and prospects.

We may determine to emphasize the growth of our business through the acquisition of complementary businesses and technologies rather than through internal development. The identification of suitable acquisition candidates can be difficult, time-consuming and costly, and we may not be able to successfully complete identified acquisitions or the acquisitions may cause diversion of management time and focus away from operating our business. Following any acquisition, we may face difficulty integrating acquired businesses, including technology, finance and accounting and sales and marketing functions; challenges retaining acquired employees; future write-offs of intangibles or other assets; and potential litigation, claims or other known and unknown liabilities.

Depending on the condition of any business or technology we may acquire, that acquisition may, at least in the near term, adversely affect our financial condition and operating results and, if not successfully integrated with our organization, may continue to have these effects over a longer period. We may not realize the anticipated benefits of any acquisitions and we may not be successful in overcoming these risks or any other problems encountered in connection with potential acquisitions. The greater our emphasis on acquisitions, the greater these risks will become. Furthermore, although we have previously acquired other loan origination businesses, we can provide no assurances that we will be successful in identifying additional future opportunities that meet our acquisition criteria or that, once identified, we will be successful in completing an acquisition or integrating an acquired business, and any future acquisitions may not provide the same benefits to us, or otherwise be as successful, as past acquisitions. Our inability to overcome these risks could have an adverse effect on our profitability, return on equity and return on assets, our ability to implement our business strategy and enhance stockholder value, which, in turn, could have a material and adverse effect on our business, operating results, financial condition and prospects.

A substantial portion of our assets are measured at fair value. If our estimates of their value prove to be inaccurate, we may be required to write them down, which could adversely affect our business and financial condition.

We record the value of our MSRs, interest rate lock commitments (“IRLCs”), mortgage loans held for sale (“MLHS”), the contingent liabilities related to our completed acquisitions and our inventory of loans for which we have repurchase rights at fair value. Fair value determinations require many assumptions and complex analyses for which we cannot control many of the underlying factors. If our estimates prove to be incorrect, we may be required to write down the value of these assets, which could adversely affect our earnings, financial condition and liquidity. See “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk—Fair Value Risk” for more information.

 

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In particular, our estimates of the fair value of our MSRs are based on the cash flows projected to result from the servicing of the related mortgage loans and continually fluctuate due to a number of factors, including prepayment rates and other market conditions that affect the number of loans that ultimately become delinquent or are repaid or refinanced. These estimates are calculated by a third party using complex financial models that account for a high number of variables that drive cash flows associated with MSRs and anticipate changes in those variables over the life of the MSR. As such, the accuracy of our estimates of the fair value of our MSRs are highly dependent upon the reasonableness of the results of such models and the variables and assumptions that we build into them. If loan delinquencies or prepayment speeds are higher than anticipated or other factors perform worse than modeled, the recorded value of certain of our MSRs may decrease, which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We may from time to time be subject to litigation, which may be extremely costly to defend, could result in substantial judgment or settlement costs and could subject us to other remedies.

From time to time, we have been, and may continue to be, involved in various legal proceedings, including, but not limited to, actions related to our lending and servicing practices as well as alleged violations of the local, state and federal laws to which our business is subject. See “Business—Legal and Regulatory Proceedings.” Claims may be expensive to defend and may divert management’s time away from our operations, regardless of whether they are meritorious or ultimately lead to a judgment against us. We cannot assure you that we will be able to successfully defend or resolve any current or future litigation matters, and the resolution of such matters may result in significant financial payments by, or penalties imposed upon, us, restrictions on our business and operations, or other remedies, in which case those litigation matters could have a material and adverse effect on our business, operating results, financial condition and prospects.

We rely on internal models to manage risk and to make business decisions. The failure of our internal models to produce reliable or accurate results could have a material and adverse effect on our business, operating results, financial condition and prospects.

We measure and monitor our risk exposures, evaluate risk profiles associated with loans and products, and manage our business using internally-generated models. For example, we use models to measure and monitor our exposures to interest rate, credit and other market risks. The information provided by these models is used in making business decisions relating to strategies, initiatives, transactions, pricing and products. Models are inherently imperfect predictors of actual results because they are based on historical data available to us and our assumptions about factors such as future mortgage loan demand, default rates, market trends and other factors. The failure of our internal models to produce reliable or accurate results could have a material and adverse effect on our business, operating results, financial condition and prospects.

The success and growth of our business will depend upon our ability to adapt to and implement technological changes.

The mortgage industry is continually undergoing rapid technological change with frequent introductions of new products and services. We seek to differentiate ourselves by the range of mortgage programs we offer and rely on our internally-developed technology to make our platform available to our loan officers, evaluate mortgage applicants and service loans. Our future success and growth depend, in part, upon our ability to develop new products and services that satisfy changing client demand and use technology to provide a desirable client experience and to create additional efficiencies in our operations. If we fail to predict demand and develop, commercially market and achieve acceptance of attractive products and services, our business and prospects could be adversely affected. In addition, the implementation of technological changes and upgrades to maintain current systems and integrate new ones may also cause service interruptions, transaction processing errors and system conversion delays, may cause us to fail to

 

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comply with applicable laws, and may cause us to incur additional expenses, which may be substantial. Failure to keep pace successfully with technological change affecting the mortgage industry and avoid interruptions, errors and delays could have material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations.

Our corporate culture has contributed to our success and if we are unable to maintain it, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be harmed.

We believe our corporate culture has been a critical component to the success of our business. As we develop the infrastructure of a public company and continue to grow, however, it may be difficult to maintain that culture, which could reduce our ability to innovate and operate effectively. Any failure to maintain the key aspects of our culture could result in decreased employee satisfaction and increased difficulty in recruiting and retaining employees and could compromise the quality of the service that we

provide to our clients, all of which are important to our success and to the effective execution of our business strategy. In the event that we are unable to maintain our corporate culture, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be harmed.

The current economic environment poses significant challenges and could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We are operating in a challenging and uncertain economic environment. The mortgage industry continues to be affected by uncertainty in the real estate market, the credit markets, and the global financial market generally. The uncertainty in economic conditions has subjected us and other financial services companies to increased regulatory scrutiny. In addition, deterioration in local economic conditions in our markets could result in losses beyond that provided for in our allowance for credit losses and result in increased mortgage delinquencies, problem assets and foreclosures. This may also result in declining demand for products and services, which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Adverse events to our clients could occur, which can result in substantial losses that could adversely affect our financial condition.

A client’s ability or willingness to repay his or her mortgage may be adversely affected by numerous factors, including a loss of or change in employment or income, weak macro-economic conditions, increases in payment obligations to other lenders and deterioration in the value of the home that serves as collateral for the loan. Increases in delinquencies or defaults related to these and other factors may adversely affect our business, financial condition, liquidity and results of operations and may also cause decreased demand in the secondary market for loans originated through Guild. In addition, higher risk loans incur greater servicing costs because they require more frequent interaction with clients and closer monitoring and oversight. We may not be able to pass along these additional servicing costs associated with higher-risk loans to our clients and they could result in substantial losses that could adversely affect our financial condition.

Our business could be materially and adversely affected by a cybersecurity breach or other vulnerability involving our computer systems or those of certain of our third-party service providers.

Our systems and those of certain of our third-party service providers could be vulnerable to hardware and cybersecurity issues. Our operations depend upon our ability to protect our computer equipment against damage from fire, power loss, telecommunications failure or a similar catastrophic event. We could also experience a breach by intentional or negligent conduct on the part of employees or other sources. Any damage or failure that causes an interruption in our operations or those of our third-party service providers could have an adverse effect on our business, operating results, financial condition and prospects. In addition, our operations depend upon our ability to protect the computer systems and network infrastructure we use against damage from cybersecurity attacks by sophisticated third parties with

 

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substantial computing resources and capabilities and other disruptive problems caused by the internet or other users. These disruptions could jeopardize the security of information stored in and transmitted through our computer systems and network infrastructure, including personal or confidential information of our clients, employees and others, which may result in significant liability and damage our reputation.

It is difficult or impossible to defend against every risk being posed by changing technologies as well as criminals intent on committing cyber-crime and any measures we employ may not be successful in preventing, detecting or stopping attacks. The increasing sophistication and resources of cyber criminals and other non-state threat actors and increased actions by nation-state actors make keeping up with new threats difficult and could result in a breach of security. Controls employed by our information technology department and our third-party service providers, including cloud vendors, could prove inadequate. A breach of our security that results in unauthorized access to our data could expose us to a disruption or challenges relating to our daily operations, as well as to data loss, litigation, damages, fines and penalties, significant increases in compliance costs and reputational damage, any of which could have a material and adverse effect on our business, operating results, financial condition and prospects.

A number of the states, counties and cities in which we maintain branch offices have issued shelter-in-place and similar orders in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, a significant portion of our employees have been working remotely. This transition to a remote work environment may exacerbate certain risks to our business, including increasing the stress on, and our vulnerability to disruptions of, our technology infrastructure and computer systems, increased risk of phishing and other cybersecurity attacks, and increased risk of unauthorized dissemination of personal or confidential information.

To the extent we or our systems rely on third-party service providers, through either a connection to, or an integration with, those third-parties’ systems, the risk of cybersecurity attacks and loss, corruption or unauthorized publication of our information or the confidential information of our clients, employees and others may increase. Third-party risks may include ineffective security measures, data location uncertainty and the possibility of data storage in inappropriate jurisdictions where laws or security measures may be inadequate.

Any or all of the issues described above could adversely affect our ability to attract new clients and continue our relationship with existing clients and could subject us to governmental or third-party lawsuits, investigations, regulatory fines or other actions or liability, thereby harming our business, operating results, financial condition and prospects.

Potential changes in applicable technology and consumer outreach techniques could have a material and adverse effect on our business, operating results, financial condition and prospects.

Changes in technology and consumer outreach techniques continue to shape the mortgage origination and servicing landscape. In recent years, consumers’ behavior patterns, in particular their propensity to use online sources for research, product comparison and guidance, have changed and continue to change. Similarly, available technologies for reaching targeted groups of consumers also continues to evolve, as do laws and regulations relating to such technologies. We expect that we will incur costs in the future to adjust our systems to adapt to changing behaviors and technologies, as well as changing laws and regulations. In the future, technological innovations and changes in the way consumers engage with technology, and such laws and regulations, may materially and adversely affect our operating results, financial condition and prospects, if our business model and technological infrastructure do not evolve accordingly.

In addition, we derive a portion of our website traffic from consumers who search for mortgage lenders through internet search engines. An important factor in attracting consumers to our website is whether we are prominently displayed in response to certain internet searches. Search engines may revise their algorithms from time to time, which could cause our website to be listed less prominently in algorithmic search results and lead to decreased traffic to our website. We may also be listed less prominently as a

 

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result of other factors, such as new websites, changes we make to our website or technical issues with the search engine itself. If we are listed less prominently in, or removed altogether from, search result listings for any reason, the traffic to our websites would decline and we may not be able to replace this traffic. An attempt to replace this traffic may require us to increase our marketing expenditures, which would also increase our cost of client acquisition and harm our business, operating results, financial condition and prospects.

Operating and growing our business may require additional capital, and if capital is not available to us, our business, operating results, financial condition and prospects may suffer.

Operating and growing our business is expected to require further investments in our technology and operations. We may be presented with opportunities that we want to pursue, and unforeseen challenges may present themselves, any of which could cause us to require additional capital. If our cash needs exceed our expectations or we experience rapid growth, we could experience strain in our cash flow, which could adversely affect our operations in the event we were unable to obtain other sources of liquidity. If we seek to raise funds through equity or debt financing, those funds may prove to be unavailable, may only be available on terms that are not acceptable to us or may result in significant dilution to you or higher levels of leverage. If we are unable to obtain adequate financing or financing on terms satisfactory to us, when we require it, our ability to continue to pursue our business objectives and to respond to business opportunities, challenges or unforeseen circumstances could be significantly limited, and our business, operating results, financial condition and prospects could be materially and adversely affected.

We are subject to certain operational risks, including, but not limited to, employee or customer fraud, the obligation to repurchase sold loans in the event of a documentation error, and data processing system failures and errors.

Employee errors and employee and client misconduct could subject us to financial losses or regulatory sanctions and seriously harm our reputation. Misconduct by our employees could include, among other things, improper use of confidential information and fraud. It is not always possible to prevent employee errors and misconduct or documentation errors, and the precautions we take to prevent and detect this activity may not be effective in all cases. In addition, we rely heavily upon information supplied by third parties, including the information contained in credit applications, property appraisals, title information and valuation, employment and income documentation, in deciding which loans we will originate, as well as the terms of those loans. If any of the information upon which we rely is misrepresented, either fraudulently or inadvertently, and the misrepresentation is not detected prior to the mortgage being funded, the value of that mortgage may be significantly lower than expected, or we may fund a mortgage that we would not have funded or on terms we would not have extended. Whether a misrepresentation is made by the mortgage applicant or another third party, we generally bear the risk of loss associated with such misrepresentation. A loan subject to a material misrepresentation is typically unsellable or subject to repurchase if it is sold prior to detection of the misrepresentation. The sources of the misrepresentations are often difficult to identify, and it is often difficult to recover any of the monetary losses we may suffer. These risks could adversely affect our business, results of operation, financial condition and reputation.

We may be required to repurchase mortgage loans that we have sold, or indemnify purchasers of our mortgage loans, if these loans fail to meet certain criteria or characteristics or under other circumstances.

At the time a loan is sold to an investor, we make certain representations and warranties. If defects are subsequently discovered in these representations and warranties that cause a loan to no longer satisfy the applicable investor eligibility requirements, we may be required to repurchase that loan. We are also required to indemnify several of our investors for borrowers’ prepayments and defaults. In addition, with respect to delinquent Ginnie Mae mortgage loans that we service, we are required to repurchase such loans prior to foreclosing and liquidating the mortgaged properties securing such loans. For the six months ended June 30, 2020, Ginnie Mae accounted for 37.5% of the UPB of our servicing portfolio.

 

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As of June 30, 2020, we have recorded a reserve of $11.1 million for repurchase and indemnification obligations. Actual repurchase and indemnification obligations could materially exceed the reserves we have recorded in our financial statements. There can be no guarantee that future losses will not be in excess of the recorded liability.

We are required to make significant estimates and assumptions in the preparation of our financial statements. These estimates and assumptions may not be accurate and they, as well as the accounting principles generally accepted in the United States, are subject to change.

The preparation of our consolidated financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires our management to make significant estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of our assets and liabilities and disclosures of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the consolidated financial statements, and the reported amounts of income and expense during the reporting periods. Critical estimates are made by management in determining, among other things, estimates of fair value and allowance for credit losses. If our underlying estimates and assumptions prove to be incorrect or if events occur that require us to revise our previous estimates or assumptions, our business, operating results, financial condition and prospects may be materially and adversely affected.

In addition, changes in GAAP or in accounting interpretations or assumptions could impact our financial statements and our ability to timely prepare our financial statements. A change in these principles or interpretations could also have a significant effect on our reported financial results and could require us to alter our accounting systems in a manner that could increase our operating costs and affect the content of and our ability to timely prepare our financial statements. Our inability to timely prepare our financial statements in the future could materially and adversely affect our share price.

Seasonality may cause fluctuations in our financial results.

The mortgage origination industry can be seasonal. We typically experience an increase in our mortgage origination activity during the second and third quarters and reduced activity in the first and fourth quarters as homebuyers tend to purchase their homes during the spring and summer in order to move to a new home before the start of the school year. Accordingly, our loan origination revenues varies from quarter to quarter and comparisons of sequential quarters may not be meaningful.

If we fail to protect our brand and reputation, our ability to grow our business and increase the volume of mortgages we originate and service may be adversely affected.

Maintaining strong brand recognition and a reputation for trustworthiness and for delivering a superior client experience is important to our business. If we fail to protect our brand and deliver on these expectations, or if negative public opinion relating to Guild or other mortgage industry participants resulting from actual or alleged conduct in mortgage origination, servicing or other activities, government oversight or regulation, litigation or other matters should occur, these events could harm our reputation and damage our ability to attract and retain clients or maintain our referral network, which could adversely affect our business.

We could be forced to incur greater expense marketing our brand or maintaining our reputation in the future to preserve our position in the market and, even with such greater expense, we may not be successful in doing so. Many of our competitors have more resources than we do and can spend more advertising their brands and services. If we are unable to maintain or enhance consumer awareness of our brand cost-effectively and maintain our reputation, or otherwise experience negative publicity, our business, operating results, financial condition and prospects could be materially and adversely affected.

Employee litigation and unfavorable publicity could adversely affect our business.

Our employees may, from time to time, bring lawsuits against us regarding employment issues. Any such employee litigation could be attempted on a class or representative basis. This litigation can be

 

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expensive and time-consuming regardless of whether the claims against us are valid or whether we are ultimately determined to be liable, and could divert management’s attention from our business. We could also be adversely affected by negative publicity, litigation costs resulting from the defense of these claims and the diversion of time and resources from our operations.

Failure to comply with fair lending laws and regulations could lead to a wide variety of sanctions that could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Antidiscrimination statutes, such as the Fair Housing Act, the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (the “ECOA”) and other fair lending laws and regulations prohibit creditors from discriminating against loan applicants and borrowers based on certain characteristics, such as race, religion and national origin. The Department of Justice and other federal agencies, including the CFPB, are responsible for enforcing these laws and regulations and have taken the position that these laws apply not only to intentional discrimination, but also to neutral practices that have a “disparate impact” on a group that shares a characteristic that a creditor may not consider in making credit decisions protected classes (i.e., creditor, servicing or marketing practices that have a disproportionate negative effect on a protected class of individuals). To the extent that this “disparate impact” theory continues to apply, we will be faced with significant administrative burdens in attempting to comply, and potential liability for failures to comply. A successful regulatory challenge to our performance under these fair lending laws and regulations could result in a wide variety of sanctions, including damages and civil money penalties. Such sanctions could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We are subject to certain risks associated with adverse weather conditions and man-made or natural events.

Weather conditions and man-made or natural events such as tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes, fires, floods, drought, power losses, telecommunications failures, strikes, health pandemics and similar events can adversely impact properties that collateralize loans we own or service, as well as properties where we do business and our business operations generally. Any uninsured loss related to such events could result in the loss of cash flow from, and the asset value of, the affected properties, and could adversely affect us disproportionately from other participants in the mortgage industry due to the geographic characteristics of our business, which could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition, liquidity and results of operations.

Exposure to additional income tax liabilities could affect our future profitability.

We are subject to income taxes in the United States and various state jurisdictions. Our effective tax rate and profitability could be subject to volatility or adversely affected by a number of factors, including:

 

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changes in applicable tax laws and regulations, or their interpretation and application, including the possibility of retroactive effect;

 

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changes in accounting and tax standards or practice;

 

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changes in the mix of earnings and losses in state jurisdictions with differing tax rates;

 

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changes in the valuation of deferred tax assets and liabilities; and

 

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our operating results before taxes.

In addition, we may be subject to audits of our income, sales and other taxes by U.S. federal, state and local taxing authorities. Outcomes from these audits could have a material and adverse effect on our operating results, financial condition and prospects.

Changes in tax laws may adversely affect us, and the Internal Revenue Service (the “IRS”) or a court may disagree with our tax positions, which may result in adverse effects on our financial condition or the value of our common stock.

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “TCJA”), enacted on December 22, 2017, significantly affected U.S. tax law, including by changing how the U.S. imposes tax on certain types of income of corporations and by

 

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reducing the U.S. federal corporate income tax rate to 21%. It also imposed new limitations on a number of tax benefits, including deductions for business interest, use of net operating loss carryforwards, taxation of foreign income and the foreign tax credit, among others.

The CARES Act, enacted on March 27, 2020, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, further amended the U.S. federal tax code, including in respect of certain changes that were made by the TCJA, generally on a temporary basis.

It is possible that future tax law changes will increase the rate of the corporate income tax significantly, impose new limitations on deductions, credits or other tax benefits, or make other changes that may adversely affect our business, cash flows or financial performance. In addition, the IRS has yet to issue guidance on a number of important issues regarding the changes made by the TCJA and the CARES Act. In the absence of such guidance, we will take positions with respect to a number of unsettled issues. It is possible that the IRS or a court will not agree with the positions taken by us, in which case additional taxes, tax penalties and interest may be imposed that could adversely affect our business, cash flows or financial performance.

If we are unable to adequately protect our intellectual property, our ability to compete could be harmed.

We do not currently have any trademarks, patents or trademark or patent applications pending to protect our intellectual property rights, but we have developed systems and processes relating to our mortgage products and services. We rely on a combination of trade secret laws and contractual agreements, as well as our internal system access security protocols, to establish, maintain and protect our intellectual property rights and technology. Despite efforts to protect our intellectual property, these laws, agreements and systems may not be sufficient to effectively prevent unauthorized disclosure or unauthorized use of our trade secrets or other confidential information or to prevent third parties from misappropriating our technology and offering similar or superior functionality. Monitoring and protecting our intellectual property rights can be challenging and costly, and we may not be effective in policing or prosecuting such unauthorized use or disclosure.

Furthermore, legal standards relating to the validity, enforceability and scope of protection of intellectual property rights are uncertain. Third parties also may take actions that diminish the value of our proprietary rights or our reputation or cause consumer confusion through the use of similar service names or domain names. Any of these results could harm our business, operating results, financial condition and prospects.

Although we enter into confidentiality and invention assignment agreements with our employees and enter into confidentiality agreements with third parties, including suppliers and other partners, we cannot guarantee that we have entered into agreements with each party that has or may have had access to our proprietary information, know-how and trade secrets. Moreover, it is possible that these agreements will be effective in controlling access to, distribution, use, misuse, misappropriation, reverse engineering or disclosure of our proprietary information, know-how and trade secrets. Further, these agreements may not prevent our competitors from independently developing technologies that are substantially equivalent or superior to our products and platform capabilities. These agreements may be breached, and we may not have adequate remedies for any such breach.

We may become subject to intellectual property disputes that are costly and may subject us to significant liability and increased costs of doing business.

Third parties may be able to successfully challenge, oppose, invalidate, render unenforceable, dilute, misappropriate or circumvent our intellectual property rights. Our success depends, in part, on our ability to develop and commercialize our products and services without infringing, misappropriating or otherwise violating the intellectual property rights of third parties. However, we may not be aware that our products or services are infringing, misappropriating or otherwise violating third-party intellectual property rights and such third parties may bring claims alleging such infringement, misappropriation or violation.

 

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Actions we may take to enforce our intellectual property rights may be expensive and divert management’s attention away from the ordinary operation of our business, and our inability to secure and protect our intellectual property rights could materially and adversely affect our brand and business, operating results, financial condition and prospects. Furthermore, enforcement actions, even if successful, may not result in an adequate remedy. In addition, many companies have the capability to dedicate greater resources to enforce their intellectual property rights and to defend claims that may be brought against them. If a third party is able to obtain an injunction preventing us from accessing such third-party intellectual property rights, or if we cannot license or develop alternative technology for any infringing aspect of our business, we could be forced to limit or stop sales of our products and platform capabilities or cease business activities related to that intellectual property.

Although we carry general liability insurance, our insurance may not cover potential claims of this type or may not be adequate to indemnify us for all liability that may be imposed. We cannot predict the outcome of lawsuits and cannot ensure that the results of any such actions will not have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations. Claims could subject us to significant liability for damages and could result in our having to stop using technology found to be in violation of a third party’s rights. Further, we might be required to seek a license for third-party intellectual property, which may not be available on reasonable royalty or other terms. Alternatively, we could be required to develop alternative non-infringing technology, which could require significant effort and expense. If we cannot license or develop technology for any infringing aspect of our business, we could be forced to limit our services, which could affect our ability to compete effectively. Any of these events or results could harm our business, operating results, financial condition and prospects.

Risks Related to Regulatory Environment

Our mortgage loan origination and servicing activities are subject to a highly complex legal and regulatory framework, and non-compliance with or changes in laws and regulations governing our industry could harm our business, operating results, financial condition and prospects.

The mortgage industry is subject to a highly complex legal and regulatory framework. In addition to the licensing requirements for each of the jurisdictions in which we originate loans, we must comply with a number of federal, state and local consumer protection and other laws including, among others, the Truth in Lending Act, the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, the ECOA, the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the Fair Housing Act, the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”), the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, the Electronic Fund Transfer Act, the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, Military Lending Act, the Homeowners Protection Act, the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act, the Secure and Fair Enforcement for Mortgage Licensing Act of 2008 (the “SAFE Act”), the Federal Trade Commission Act, the Dodd Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 (“Dodd-Frank Act”), the CARES Act, federal, state and local laws designed to discourage predatory lending and servicing practices, prohibit unfair, deceptive, or abusive acts or practices, protect customer privacy, and regulate debt collection and consumer credit reporting, and state foreclosure laws. These and other laws and regulations directly affect our business and require constant compliance monitoring and internal and external audits and examinations by federal and state regulators. Changes to the laws, regulations and guidelines relating to the origination and servicing of mortgages, including those already adopted and those to be adopted in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, their interpretation or the manner in which they are enforced could render our current business practices non-compliant or make compliance more difficult or expensive.

It is possible that we are not, and will not in the future be, in full compliance with current and future laws and regulations, or interpretations of the foregoing. Our failure, or the failure of our loan officers, other employees, correspondent sellers or others with whom we have business relationships, to operate in compliance with any of the laws, regulations and guidelines relating to the origination and servicing of mortgages could result in, among other things, the loss of licenses and approvals required for us to engage in the business of originating and servicing mortgage loans, governmental investigations and enforcement actions, damage to our brand and reputation, civil and criminal liability and administrative penalties, which

 

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could have a material and adverse effect on our business, operating results, financial condition and prospects.

We are subject to state licensing and operational requirements. Our failure to obtain and maintain the appropriate state licenses would prohibit us from originating or servicing mortgages in those states and adversely affect our operations.

Because we are not a federally chartered depository institution, we do not benefit from exemptions to state mortgage lending, loan servicing or debt collection licensing and regulatory requirements. In most states in which we operate, a regulatory agency or agencies regulates and enforces laws relating to mortgage servicing companies and mortgage origination companies such as us. These rules and regulations generally require that we seek and maintain certain licenses and comply with certain business practice standards, including requirements as to the form and content of contracts and other documentation and the licensing of our employees. As a non-bank mortgage lender, we are subject to licensure, regulation and supervision by every state, district and territory in which we do business. States examine non-bank mortgage lenders and servicers periodically, depending on state law requirements and other factors such as the lender’s size and compliance history. These examinations may include a review of the non-bank lender’s compliance with all federal and state consumer protection laws, compliance management system and internal controls. Complying with this regulatory framework requires a meaningful dedication of management and financial resources. Changes to existing state legislation or the adoption of new state legislation, as well as our entry into new markets in states in which we had not previously operated, could increase our compliance costs. This could render business in any one state or states cost-prohibitive and could materially affect our business and our growth strategy. Any failure to comply with these licensing and operational requirements could have a material and adverse effect on our business, operating results, financial condition and prospects.

Changes in the guidelines of the GSEs, FHA, VA, USDA and Ginnie Mae could adversely affect our business.

We are required to follow specific guidelines and eligibility standards that impact the way we service and originate GSE and U.S. government agency loans, including guidelines and standards with respect to credit standards for mortgage loans, our staffing levels and other servicing practices and the servicing and ancillary fees that we may charge. In addition, we are required to meet certain minimum financial requirements relating to our net worth, capital ratio and liquidity in order to sell the loans that we originate to certain investors, including the GSEs. A change in these guidelines could require us to expend additional resources to originate and service mortgages or make it more difficult for us to do so profitably or at all and a failure to meet applicable financial requirements could materially impair our ability to originate and service loans, any of which could have a material and adverse effect on our business, operating results, financial condition and prospects.

In addition, changes in the nature or extent of the guarantees provided by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Ginnie Mae, the USDA or the VA, or the insurance provided by the FHA, or coverage provided by private mortgage insurers, could also have broad adverse market implications. Any future increases in guarantee fees or changes to their structure or increases in the premiums we are required to pay to the FHA or private mortgage insurers for insurance or to the VA or the USDA for guarantees could increase mortgage origination costs and insurance premiums for our clients. These industry changes could result in reduced demand for our mortgage services and consequently our origination volume and reduced profitability for us, which could materially and adversely affect our business, operating results, financial condition and prospects.

 

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The CFPB continues to be active in its monitoring of the loan origination and servicing sectors, and its issuance of new rules and regulations and enforcement of existing rules and regulations could result in enforcement actions, fines and penalties.

As a non-depository lending and servicing institution, we are subject to the regulatory authority of the CFPB, including, without limitation, its authority to conduct investigations, bring enforcement actions, impose monetary penalties, require remediation of practices, pursue administrative proceedings or litigation, and obtain cease and desist orders for violations of applicable federal consumer financial laws. The CFPB has been active in investigations and enforcement actions and has issued civil money penalties to parties when the CFPB has determined that such parties have violated the laws and regulations it enforces. Our failure to comply with the federal consumer protection laws, rules and regulations to which we are subject, whether actual or alleged, could expose us to enforcement actions or potential litigation liabilities.

We may not be able to maintain compliance with all current and potentially applicable U.S. federal and state laws and regulations with respect to data privacy and cybersecurity, and related actions by regulatory authorities or changes in legislation and regulation in the jurisdictions in which we operate could have a material adverse effect on our business.

We are subject to a variety of laws and regulations with respect to data privacy and the collection, processing, storing, sharing, disclosing, using, transfer and protecting of personal information and other data. These laws and regulations constantly evolve and remain subject to significant change. Because we store, process and use data, including our clients’ personal information, we are subject to complex and evolving federal, state and local laws and regulations regarding privacy, data protection and other matters. The application and interpretation of these laws and regulations are often uncertain. Compliance with existing and emerging privacy and cybersecurity regulations could result in increased compliance costs and lead to changes in business practices and policies, and any failure to protect the confidentiality of client information could result in enforcement actions and penalties or other remedies, adversely affect our reputation and result in private litigation against us, any of which could materially and adversely affect our business, operating results, financial condition and prospects.

Our communications with potential and existing clients are subject to laws regulating telephone and email marketing practices.

We make telephone calls and send emails and text messages to potential and existing clients. The United States regulates marketing by telephone and email and the laws and regulations governing the use of emails and telephone calls for marketing purposes continue to evolve, and changes in technology, the marketplace or consumer preferences may lead to the adoption of additional laws or regulations or changes in interpretation of existing laws or regulations. New laws or regulations, or changes to the manner in which existing laws and regulations or interpreted or enforced, may further restrict our ability to contact potential and existing customers by phone and email and could render us unable to communicate with consumers in a cost-effective fashion. The TCPA prohibits companies from making telemarketing calls to numbers listed in the Federal Do-Not-Call Registry and imposes other obligations and limitations on making phone calls and sending text messages to consumers. The Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act regulates commercial email messages and specifies penalties for the transmission of commercial email messages that do not comply with certain requirements, such as providing an opt-out mechanism for stopping future emails from senders. We may be required to comply with these and similar laws, rules and regulations. Failure to comply with obligations and restrictions related to telephone, text message and email marketing could subject us to lawsuits, fines, statutory damages, consent decrees, injunctions, adverse publicity and other losses that could harm our business.

 

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Changes in government regulation of the internet and other aspects of our business, as well as a failure to comply with existing or future regulations and laws, could adversely affect our operations.

We are subject to regulations and laws specifically governing the internet and marketing over the internet. These laws and regulations, which continue to evolve, cover privacy and data protection, data security, anti-spam, pricing, content protection, copyrights, distribution, mobile and other communications, advertising practices, electronic contracts, consumer protections, internet neutrality, the provision of online payment services, unencumbered internet access to our services, the design and operation of websites and the characteristics and quality of offerings online. It is possible that these regulations and laws may be interpreted and applied differently across jurisdictions. In addition, it is not clear how existing laws and regulations governing issues such as property ownership, consumer protection, libel and personal privacy apply to the internet, as many of these laws were adopted prior to the advent of the internet and do not contemplate or address the unique issues they raise when applied to the internet. Any failure, or perceived failure, by us to comply with such regulations could result in damage to our reputation, a loss in business and proceedings or actions against us by governmental entities or others.

Future regulations, or changes in laws and regulations or their existing interpretations or applications, could also impose a significant burden by requiring us to change our business practices, raise compliance costs or other costs of doing business and materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and operating results. We cannot guarantee that we will be able to make the appropriate changes and modifications in a commercially reasonable manner, or at all.

Risks Related to Our Organization and Structure

We will be controlled by MCMI, and MCMI’s interests may conflict with our interests and the interests of our other stockholders.

After giving effect to the reorganization transactions and this offering, MCMI will hold all of our issued and outstanding Class B common stock and will control approximately 94.8% of the combined voting power of our outstanding common stock. As a result, MCMI will be able to control any action requiring the general approval of our stockholders, including the election of our Board of Directors, the adoption of amendments to our certificate of incorporation and bylaws and the approval of any merger or sale of substantially all of our assets. So long as MCMI continues to directly or indirectly own a significant amount of our equity, even if such amount is less than a majority of the combined voting power of our outstanding common stock, MCMI will continue to be able to substantially influence the outcome of votes on all matters requiring approval by the stockholders, including our ability to enter into certain corporate transactions. The interests of MCMI could conflict with or differ from our interests or the interests of our other stockholders. For example, the concentration of ownership held by MCMI could delay, defer or prevent a change of control of our Company or impede a merger, takeover or other business combination that may otherwise be attractive to us or our other stockholders.

We will be a “controlled company” within the meaning of the NYSE rules and, as a result, we will be permitted, and intend to elect, to rely on exemptions from certain corporate governance requirements that provide protection to stockholders of other companies.

After giving effect to the reorganization transactions and the closing of this offering, MCMI will continue to control a majority of the combined voting power of our outstanding common stock, and, as a result, we will be a controlled company under the applicable rules of the NYSE. As a controlled company, we will be permitted, and intend, to elect not to comply with certain corporate governance requirements of the NYSE, including the requirements that:

 

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a majority of our Board of Directors consist of independent directors;

 

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we have a nominating and corporate governance committee that is composed entirely of independent directors; and

 

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we have a compensation committee that is composed entirely of independent directors.

 

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These requirements will not apply to us as long as we remain a controlled company. Accordingly, as an investor in our Class A common stock, you may not have the same protections afforded to stockholders of companies that are subject to all of the corporate governance requirements of the NYSE.

Our directors and executive officers have significant control over our business.

After giving effect to the reorganization transactions and the closing of this offering, our directors and executive officers will beneficially own, directly or indirectly, in the aggregate, approximately 32.6% of the outstanding shares of our Class A common stock and 100% of the outstanding shares of our Class B common stock (to the extent the Chairman of our Board of Directors may be deemed to beneficially own all of the shares of our Class B common stock beneficially owned by MCMI), representing an aggregate of approximately 96.5% of the combined voting power of our outstanding common stock. As a result, in addition to their day-to-day management roles, our executive officers and directors will be able to exercise significant influence on our business as stockholders, including influence over election of members of the Board of Directors and the authorization of other corporate actions requiring stockholder approval.

We are a holding company and depend upon distributions from Guild Mortgage Co. to meet our obligations.

We are a holding company with no material assets other than our ownership of equity interests in Guild Mortgage Co., which, following the completion of the reorganization transactions, will be our wholly owned subsidiary. See “Organizational Structure.” Our ability to pay dividends and to pay taxes and cover other expenses will depend on the financial results and cash flows of Guild Mortgage Co. As the sole member of Guild Mortgage Co., we intend to cause Guild Mortgage Co. to make distributions to us in amounts sufficient to meet our obligations. Certain laws and regulations, however, may result in restrictions on Guild Mortgage Co.’s ability to make distributions to us. To the extent that we need funds and Guild Mortgage Co. is restricted from making such distributions under applicable law or regulation or under the terms of any of its financing arrangements, we may not be able to obtain funds on terms acceptable to us or at all and as a result could suffer an adverse effect on our liquidity and financial condition.

Risks Related to Being a Public Company

We may incur significant additional costs and expenses, including costs and expenses associated with obligations relating to being a public company, which will require significant resources and management attention and may divert focus from our business operations, and we may generate losses in the future.

We incur significant expenses in developing our technology, marketing and providing the products and services we offer and acquiring clients, and our costs may increase due to our continued new product development and general administrative expenses, such as legal and accounting expenses related to becoming and being a public company. We have not been required in the past to comply with the requirements of the SEC, to file periodic reports with the SEC or to have our consolidated financial statements completed, reviewed or audited and filed within a specified time. As a public company following completion of this offering, we will be required to file periodic reports containing our consolidated financial statements with the SEC within a specified time following the completion of quarterly and annual periods. As a public company, we will incur significant legal, accounting, insurance and other expenses. Compliance with these reporting requirements and other rules of the SEC and the rules of the NYSE will increase our legal and financial compliance costs and make some activities more time-consuming and costly. Furthermore, the need to establish the corporate infrastructure demanded of a public company may divert management’s attention from implementing our growth strategy, which could prevent us from successfully implementing our strategic initiatives and improving our business, operating results, financial condition and prospects. If we fail to manage these additional costs or increase our revenue, we may incur losses in the future.

 

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Our quarterly operating results or other operating metrics may fluctuate significantly and may not meet expectations of research analysts, which could cause the trading price of our Class A common stock to decline.

Our quarterly operating results and other operating metrics have fluctuated in the past and may in the future fluctuate as a result of a number of factors, many of which are outside of our control and may be difficult to predict. Period-to-period variability or unpredictability of our results could result in our failure to meet our expectations or those of any analysts that cover us or investors with respect to revenue or other operating results for a particular period. If we fail to meet or exceed such expectations for these or any other reasons, the market price of our Class A common stock could decline significantly, and we could face litigation, including securities class action litigation.

If we fail to correct any material weakness that we identify in our internal control over financial reporting or otherwise fail to maintain effective internal control over financial reporting, we may not be able to report our financial results accurately and timely, in which case our business may be harmed, investors may lose confidence in the accuracy and completeness of our financial reports and the price of our Class A common stock may decline.

Our management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting and for evaluating and reporting on our system of internal control. Our internal control over financial reporting is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with GAAP. As a public company, we will be required to comply with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and other rules that govern public companies. In particular, we will be required to certify our compliance with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act beginning with our second annual report on Form 10-K, which will require us to furnish annually a report by management on the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting. In addition, unless we remain an emerging growth company and elect transitional relief available to emerging growth companies, our independent registered public accounting firm will be required to report on the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting, beginning as of that second annual report.

If we identify material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting in the future, if we cannot comply with the requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act in a timely manner or attest that our internal control over financial reporting is effective, or if our independent registered public accounting firm cannot express an opinion as to the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting when required, we may not be able to report our financial results accurately and timely. As a result, investors, counterparties and consumers may lose confidence in the accuracy and completeness of our financial reports. As a result, access to capital markets and perceptions of our creditworthiness could be adversely affected, and the market price of our Class A common stock could decline. In addition, we could become subject to investigations by the stock exchange on which our securities are listed, the SEC or other regulatory authorities, which could require additional financial and management resources. These events could have a material and adverse effect on our business, operating results, financial condition and prospects.

If we fail to implement and maintain effective disclosure controls and procedures, we may not be able to meet applicable reporting requirements, which could materially and adversely affect us.

Upon completion of this offering, we will become subject to the informational requirements of the Exchange Act and will be required to file reports and other information with the SEC. As a publicly-traded company, we will be required to maintain disclosure controls and procedures that are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in the reports that we file with, or submit to, the SEC is recorded, processed, summarized and reported, within the time periods specified in the SEC’s rules and forms. They include controls and procedures designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in reports filed with, or submitted to, the SEC is accumulated and communicated to management, including our

 

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principal executive and principal financial officers, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure. Effective disclosure controls and procedures are necessary for us to provide reliable reports, effectively prevent and detect fraud, and to operate successfully as a public company. Designing and implementing effective disclosure controls and procedures is a continuous effort that requires significant resources and devotion of time. We may discover deficiencies in our disclosure controls and procedures that may be difficult or time consuming to remediate in a timely manner. Any failure to maintain effective disclosure controls and procedures or to timely effect any necessary improvements thereto could cause us to fail to meet our reporting obligations (which could affect the listing of our Class A common stock on the NYSE). Additionally, ineffective disclosure controls and procedures could also adversely affect our ability to prevent or detect fraud, harm our reputation and cause investors to lose confidence in our reports filed with, or submitted to, the SEC, which would likely have a negative effect on the trading price of our Class A common stock.

We are an “emerging growth company,” and the reduced disclosure requirements applicable to emerging growth companies may make our common stock less attractive to investors.

We are an “emerging growth company,” as defined in the JOBS Act. We could continue to be considered an emerging growth company for up to five years, although we would lose that status sooner if our gross revenues exceed $1.07 billion, if we issue more than $1.0 billion in nonconvertible debt in a three-year period or if the fair value of our common stock held by non-affiliates exceeds $700.0 million (and we have been a public company for at least 12 months and have filed one annual report on Form 10-K). For as long as we continue to be an emerging growth company, we intend to take advantage of an exemption from the provisions of Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act requiring that our independent registered public accounting firm provide an attestation report on the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting. An attestation report by our auditor would require additional procedures by them that could detect problems with our internal control over financial reporting that are not detected by management. If our system of internal control over financial reporting is not determined to be appropriately designed or operating effectively, it could require us to restate financial statements, cause us to fail to meet reporting obligations and cause investors to lose confidence in our reported financial information, all of which could lead to a significant decline in the market price of our Class A common stock. In addition, we may take advantage of exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not emerging growth companies, including reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements and exemptions from the requirements of holding a nonbinding advisory vote on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved. It is unclear whether investors will find our Class A common stock less attractive because we may rely on these exemptions. If some investors find our Class A common stock less attractive as a result, there may be a less active trading market for our Class A common stock and our stock price may be more volatile.

In addition, the JOBS Act provides that an emerging growth company can take advantage of an extended transition period for complying with new or revised accounting standards. This allows an emerging growth company to delay the adoption of certain accounting standards until those standards would otherwise apply to private companies. We have elected to avail ourselves of this exemption from new or revised accounting standards and, therefore, while we are an emerging growth company, we will not be subject to new or revised accounting standards at the same time that they become applicable to other public companies that are not emerging growth companies. As a result, our financial statements may not be comparable to companies that comply with new or revised accounting pronouncements as of public company effective dates, and we will incur additional costs in connection with complying with the accounting standards applicable to public companies at such time or times as they become applicable to us.

 

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Risks Related to our Class A Common Stock and this Offering

An active trading market for our Class A common stock may not develop, and you may not be able to resell your shares of our Class A common stock at or above the initial offering price.

Prior to this offering, there has been no public market for our Class A common stock. We cannot predict the extent to which investor interest in us will lead to the development of a trading market on the NYSE or otherwise, or how liquid that market might become. If an active market does not develop, you may have difficulty selling any shares of our Class A common stock that you purchase in this offering. The initial public offering price for the shares of our Class A common stock has been determined by negotiations between us and the representatives of the underwriters, and may not be indicative of prices that will prevail in the open market following this offering. An inactive market may also impair our ability to raise capital by selling shares of our Class A common stock and may impair our ability to acquire or make investments in companies, products or technologies for which we may issue equity securities as consideration or for financing purposes.

Sales of a substantial number of shares of our common stock by our existing stockholders in the public market could cause the price of our Class A common stock to fall.

Sales of a substantial number of shares of our common stock in the public market, or the perception that these sales might occur, could significantly reduce the market price of our Class A common stock. If our existing stockholders sell, or indicate an intention to sell, substantial amounts of our common stock (including shares of our Class B common stock that would convert to Class A common stock in connection with such sales) in the public market after the lock-up and legal restrictions on resale discussed in this prospectus expire, the trading price of our Class A common stock could substantially decline. Furthermore, after the reorganization transactions and the completion of this offering, 100% of our outstanding Class B common stock will be held by MCMI, and approximately 32.6% of our outstanding Class A common stock will be beneficially owned by our executive officers and directors, and we will have entered into a registration rights agreement with these stockholders. If one or more of them were to sell a substantial portion of the shares they hold, it could cause our the price of our Class A common stock to decline.

Based on shares outstanding as of the date of this prospectus, on the closing of this offering, we will have outstanding a total of 21,174,758 shares of Class A common stock and 38,825,242 shares of Class B common stock. This includes the 8,500,000 shares of Class A common stock that are being sold in this offering, which may be resold in the public market immediately. The remaining 12,674,758 shares of our Class A common stock, which represent an aggregate of approximately 59.9 % of our outstanding shares of Class A common stock after this offering, are currently, and will be following the closing of this offering, restricted as a result of securities laws or lock-up agreements but will be able to be sold, subject to any applicable volume limitations, under federal securities laws with respect to affiliate sales. The selling stockholders and each of our directors and executive officers have entered into lock-up agreements with the underwriters under which the holders of such securities have agreed that, subject to certain exceptions, without the prior written consent of Wells Fargo Securities, LLC, BofA Securities, Inc. and J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, they will not (i) transfer or dispose of any shares of the common stock, preferred stock or other capital stock of the Company, or any securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for common stock, preferred stock or other capital stock of the Company; (ii) enter into any other agreement or transaction that transfers to another any of the economic consequences of ownership of any common stock of the Company or any securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for common stock of the Company; or (iii) file any registration statement under the Securities Act with the SEC with respect to the offering of common stock or other capital stock or any securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for any common stock or other capital stock of the Company (other than any registration statement filed pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act to register securities to be sold to the underwriters pursuant to the underwriting agreement), or publicly announce any intention to do any of the foregoing. Shares of our Class A common stock purchased by any of our directors or executive officers in this offering would also be subject to the foregoing restrictions on transfer, as well as restrictions on

 

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disposition imposed by applicable law. The foregoing restrictions will remain in effect for 180 days following the date of this prospectus. Upon the expiration of the foregoing restrictions, our securityholders subject to a lock-up agreement will be able to sell our shares in the public market. In addition, the underwriters may, in their sole discretion, release all or some portion of the shares subject to lockup agreements prior to the expiration of the foregoing restrictions. For a description of these lock-up agreements, see the “Shares Eligible for Future Sale” and “Underwriting” sections of this prospectus.

In addition, as of the date of this prospectus, there were 4,299,722 shares of Class A common stock (subject to adjustment for fractional shares) available for issuance pursuant to future awards under our equity incentive plans that will become eligible for sale in the public market to the extent permitted by the provisions of various vesting schedules, the lock-up agreements discussed above and Rules 144 and 701 under the Securities Act. Moreover, we intend to register all shares of Class A common stock that we may issue under our employee benefit plans. Once we register these shares, they can be freely sold in the public market upon issuance, subject to the lock-up agreements and the restrictions imposed on our affiliates under Rule 144.

The market price for our Class A common stock may be subject to substantial fluctuations, which may make it difficult for you to sell your shares at the volumes, prices and times desired.

The market price of our Class A common stock may be highly volatile, which may make it difficult for you to sell your shares at the volumes, prices and times desired. Some factors that may have a significant effect on the market price of our Class A common stock include:

 

•

actual or anticipated fluctuations in our operating results or those of our competitors’;

 

•

actual or anticipated changes in the growth rate of mortgage originations and mortgage servicing income or the growth rate of our businesses or those of companies that investors deem comparable to us;

 

•

changes in economic or business conditions;

 

•

changes in governmental regulation; and

 

•

publication of research reports about us, our competitors, or our industry, or changes in, or failure to meet, estimates made by securities analysts or ratings agencies of our financial and operating performance, or lack of research reports by industry analysts or ceasing of analyst coverage.

If securities or industry analysts do not publish research or publish inaccurate or unfavorable research about us or our business, the price of our Class A common stock and trading volume could decline.

The trading market for our Class A common stock will depend, in part, on the research and reports that securities or industry analysts publish about us or our business. We do not currently have and may never obtain research coverage by securities and industry analysts. If no securities or industry analysts commence coverage of the Company, the trading price for our Class A common stock would be negatively impacted. If we obtain securities or industry analyst coverage and if one or more of the analysts who cover us downgrades our Class A common stock or publishes inaccurate or unfavorable research about us or our business, our share price would likely decline. If one or more of these analysts cease coverage of us or fail to publish reports on us regularly, demand for our Class A common stock could decrease, which could cause our stock price and trading volume to decline. In addition, if our operating results fail to meet the expectations of securities analysts, our stock price would likely decline.

You will experience immediate and substantial dilution in the book value of the shares you purchase in this offering.

If you purchase shares of our Class A common stock in this offering, you will experience immediate and substantial dilution of $11.48 per share, representing the difference between the initial public offering

 

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price of $18.00 per share, which is the midpoint of the price range listed on the front cover of this prospectus, and our pro forma net tangible book value per share after giving effect to the reorganization transactions. See the “Dilution” section of this prospectus.

Our issuance of capital stock in connection with financings, acquisitions, investments, our equity incentive plans or otherwise would dilute all other stockholders.

We may issue capital stock in the future. Any such issuance would result in dilution to all other stockholders. In the future, we may issue stock, including as a grant of equity awards to employees, directors and consultants under our equity incentive plans, to raise capital through equity financings or to acquire or make investments in companies, products or technologies for which we may issue equity securities as consideration or for financing purposes. Any such issuances of capital stock in the future may cause stockholders to experience significant dilution of their ownership interests and the per share value of our Class A common stock to decline.

We do not intend to pay dividends in the foreseeable future.

We do not anticipate declaring or paying regular cash dividends on our Class A common stock in the foreseeable future. Instead, we anticipate that most or all of our future earnings will be retained to support our operations and finance the growth and development of our business. Any future determination to declare and pay cash dividends, if any, will be made at the discretion of our Board of Directors and will depend on a variety of factors, including applicable laws, our financial condition, results of operations, contractual restrictions, capital requirements, business prospects, general business or financial market conditions, and other factors our Board of Directors may deem relevant. Investors should not purchase our Class A common stock with the expectation of receiving cash dividends. See “Dividend Policy.”

Certain provisions in our certificate of incorporation and bylaws and of Delaware law may prevent or delay an acquisition of Guild, which could decrease the trading price of our Class A common stock.

Our certificate of incorporation and bylaws will contain, and Delaware law contains, provisions that are intended to deter coercive takeover practices and inadequate takeover bids by making such practices or bids unacceptably expensive to the bidder and to encourage prospective acquirers to negotiate with our Board of Directors rather than to attempt a hostile takeover. These provisions include, among others, those establishing:

 

•

a dual class common stock structure, which provides MCMI with the ability to control the outcome of matters requiring stockholder approval, even if it beneficially owns significantly less than a majority of the shares of our outstanding common stock;

 

•

the division of our Board of Directors into three classes of directors, with each class serving a staggered three-year term, which could have the effect of making the replacement of incumbent directors more time-consuming and difficult;

 

•

the inability of our stockholders to call a special meeting;

 

•

the inability of our stockholders to act by written consent after the McCarthy Investors cease to beneficially own a majority of the combined voting power of our capital stock;

 

•

rules regarding how stockholders may present proposals or nominate directors for election at stockholder meetings;

 

•

the right of our Board of Directors to issue preferred stock without stockholder approval;

 

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•

the inability of stockholders to remove directors without cause after the McCarthy Investors cease to beneficially own a majority of the combined voting power of our capital stock; and

 

•

the ability of our directors, not our stockholders, to fill vacancies on the Board of Directors.

In addition, because we will not elect to be exempt from Section 203 of the Delaware General Corporation Law (the “DGCL”), this provision could also delay or prevent a change of control that you may favor. Section 203 of the DGCL provides that, subject to limited exceptions, a person that acquires, or is affiliated with a person that acquires, more than 15% of the outstanding voting stock of a Delaware corporation (an “interested stockholder”) must not engage in any business combination with that corporation, including by merger, consolidation or acquisitions of additional shares, for a three-year period following the date on which the person became an interested stockholder, unless (i) prior to such time, the board of directors of such corporation approved either the business combination or the transaction that resulted in the stockholder becoming an interested stockholder; (ii) upon consummation of the transaction that resulted in the stockholder becoming an interested stockholder, the interested stockholder owned at least 85% of the voting stock of such corporation at the time the transaction commenced (excluding for purposes of determining the voting stock outstanding (but not the outstanding voting stock owned by the interested stockholder) the voting stock owned by directors who are also officers or held in employee benefit plans in which the employees do not have a confidential right to tender or vote stock held by the plan); or (iii) on or subsequent to such time the business combination is approved by the board of directors of such corporation and authorized at a meeting of stockholders by the affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of the outstanding voting stock of such corporation not owned by the interested stockholder.

We believe these provisions will protect our stockholders from coercive or otherwise unfair takeover tactics by requiring potential acquirers to negotiate with our Board of Directors and by providing our Board of Directors with more time to assess any acquisition proposal. These provisions are not intended to make Guild immune from takeovers. However, these provisions will apply even if the offer may be considered beneficial by some stockholders and could delay or prevent an acquisition that our Board of Directors determines is not in the best interests of Guild and its stockholders. These provisions may also prevent or discourage attempts to remove and replace incumbent directors.

Our Board of Directors will have the ability to issue blank check preferred stock, which may discourage or impede acquisition attempts or other transactions.

Our Board of Directors will have the power, subject to applicable law, to issue series of preferred stock that could, depending on the terms of the series, impede the completion of a merger, tender offer or other takeover attempt. For instance, subject to applicable law, a series of preferred stock may impede a business combination by including class voting rights, which would enable the holder or holders of such series to block a proposed transaction. Our Board of Directors will make any determination to issue shares of preferred stock based on its judgment as to our and our stockholders’ best interests. Our Board of Directors, in so acting, could issue shares of preferred stock having terms which could discourage an acquisition attempt or other transaction that some, or a majority, of the stockholders may believe to be in their best interests or in which stockholders would have received a premium for their stock over the then-prevailing market price of the stock.

Our certificate of incorporation will contain an exclusive forum provision that may discourage lawsuits against us and our directors and officers.

Our certificate of incorporation will provide that, unless the Board of Directors otherwise determines, the state courts in the State of Delaware or, if no state court located within the State of Delaware has jurisdiction, the federal court for the District of Delaware, will be the sole and exclusive forum for any derivative action or proceeding brought on behalf of Guild, any action asserting a claim of breach of a fiduciary duty owed by any director or officer of Guild to Guild or Guild’s stockholders, any action asserting a claim against Guild or any director or officer of Guild arising pursuant to any provision of the DGCL or

 

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Guild’s certificate of incorporation or bylaws, or any action asserting a claim against Guild or any director or officer of Guild governed by the internal affairs doctrine under Delaware law (collectively, the “covered actions”). This exclusive forum provision will apply to all covered actions, including any covered action in which the plaintiff chooses to assert a claim or claims under federal law in addition to a claim or claims under Delaware law, although stockholders will not be deemed to have waived our compliance with the federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder. This exclusive forum provision does not apply to actions that do not assert any covered Delaware state law claims, such as, for example, any action asserting solely federal securities law claims, and the enforceability of similar choice of forum provisions in other companies’ organizational documents has been challenged in legal proceedings and it is possible that, in connection with claims arising under federal securities laws or otherwise, a court could find this exclusive forum provision to be inapplicable or unenforceable.

This exclusive forum provision may limit the ability of Guild’s stockholders to bring a claim in a judicial forum that such stockholders find favorable for disputes with Guild or Guild’s directors or officers, which may discourage such lawsuits against Guild and Guild’s directors and officers. Alternatively, if a court were to find this exclusive forum provision inapplicable to, or unenforceable in respect of, one or more of the specified types of actions or proceedings described above, Guild may incur additional costs associated with resolving such matters in other jurisdictions or forums, which could materially and adversely affect Guild’s business, financial condition or results of operations.

The dual class structure of our common stock may adversely affect the trading market for our Class A common stock.

We cannot predict the potential effects our dual class structure may have on our Class A common stock, such as a lower or more volatile market price. In 2017, S&P Dow Jones and FTSE Russell announced that they would begin excluding most newly public companies with multiple classes of shares of common stock from being added to certain indices, including the Russell 2000, the S&P 500, the S&P MidCap 400 and the S&P SmallCap 600. As a result, our dual class capital structure would make us ineligible for inclusion in any of these indices, and mutual funds, exchange-traded funds and other investment vehicles that attempt to passively track these indices likely will not invest in our stock. Furthermore, we cannot assure you that other stock indices will not take a similar approach to S&P Dow Jones or FTSE Russell in the future. It is unclear what effect, if any, these policies will have on the valuations of publicly traded companies excluded from these indices. Given the sustained flow of investment funds into passive strategies that seek to track certain indices, however, it is possible that exclusion from such indices could make our Class A common stock less attractive to investors. As a result, the market price of our Class A common stock could be adversely affected.

 

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CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This prospectus contains forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements reflect our current views with respect to, among other things, future events and our financial performance. These statements are often, but not always, made through the use of words or phrases such as “may,” “should,” “could,” “predict,” “potential,” “believe,” “will likely result,” “expect,” “continue,” “will,” “anticipate,” “seek,” “estimate,” “intend,” “plan,” “projection,” “would” and “outlook,” or the negative version of those words or other comparable words or phrases of a future or forward-looking nature. These forward-looking statements are not historical facts and are based on current expectations, estimates and projections about our industry, management’s beliefs and certain assumptions made by management, many of which, by their nature, are inherently uncertain and beyond our control. Accordingly, we caution you that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks, assumptions and uncertainties that are difficult to predict. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable as of the date made, actual results may prove to be materially different from the results expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements.

There are or will be important factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those indicated in these forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, the following:

 

•

any changes in macro-economic conditions and in U.S. residential real estate market conditions, including changes in prevailing interest rates or monetary policies and the effects of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic;

 

•

any disruptions in the secondary home loan market and their effects on our ability to sell the loans that we originate;

 

•

any changes in certain U.S. government-sponsored entities and government agencies, including Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Ginnie Mae, the FHA, the USDA and the VA, or their current roles;

 

•

the effects of any termination of our servicing rights;

 

•

the effects of our existing and future indebtedness on our liquidity and our ability to operate our business;

 

•

any failure to maintain and improve the technological infrastructure that supports our origination and servicing platform;

 

•

any failure to maintain or grow our historical referral relationships with our referral partners;

 

•

any failure to continue the historical levels of growth in our market share in the mortgage origination and servicing industry;

 

•

any decline in our ability to recapture loans from borrowers who refinance;

 

•

our inability to attract, integrate and retain qualified personnel;

 

•

our failure to identify, develop and integrate acquisitions of other companies or technologies, or any diversion of our management’s attention due to the foregoing;

 

•

inaccuracies in the estimates of the fair value of the substantial portion of our assets that are measured on that basis (including our MSRs);

 

•

the failure of the internal models that we use to manage risk and make business decisions to produce reliable or accurate results;

 

•

the costs of potential litigation and claims;

 

•

the degree of business and financial risk associated with certain of our loans;

 

•

any cybersecurity breaches or other attacks involving our computer systems or those of our third-party service providers;

 

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•

any changes in applicable technology and consumer outreach techniques;

 

•

our inability to secure additional capital, if needed, to operate and grow our business;

 

•

the impact of operational risks, including employee or consumer fraud, the obligation to repurchase sold loans in the event of a documentation error, and data processing system failures and errors;

 

•

any repurchase or indemnficiation obligations caused by the failure of the loans that we originate to meet certain criteria or characteristics;

 

•

the seasonality of the mortgage origination industry;

 

•

any failure to protect our brand and reputation;

 

•

the risks associated with adverse weather conditions and man-made or natural events;

 

•

our exposure to additional income tax liabilities and changes in tax laws, or disagreements with the IRS regarding our tax positions;

 

•

any failure to adequately protect our intellectual property and the costs of any potential intellectual property disputes;

 

•

any non-compliance with the complex laws and regulations governing our industry and the related costs associated with maintaining and monitoring compliance;

 

•

any changes in the laws and regulations governing our industry that would require us to change our business practices, raise compliance costs or other costs of doing business;

 

•

our control by, and any conflicts of interest with, MCMI;

 

•

the significant influence on our business that members of our board and management team will be able to exercise as stockholders;

 

•

our dependence, as a holding company, upon distributions from Guild Mortgage Co. to meet our obligations;

 

•

the risks related to our becoming a public company;

 

•

the risks related to our status as an “emerging growth company” and a “controlled company”;

 

•

the risks related to our Class A common stock, our dual class common stock structure and this offering; and

 

•

the other risks, uncertainties and factors set forth in this prospectus, including those set forth under “Risk Factors.”

The foregoing factors should not be construed as exhaustive and should be read together with the other cautionary statements included in this prospectus. If one or more events related to these or other risks or uncertainties materialize, or if our underlying assumptions prove to be incorrect, actual results may differ materially from what we anticipate. Many of the important factors that will determine these results are beyond our ability to control or predict. Accordingly, you should not place undue reliance on any such forward-looking statements. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made, and, except as otherwise required by law, we do not undertake any obligation to publicly update or review any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise. New factors emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for us to predict which will arise. In addition, we cannot assess the impact of each factor on our business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements.

 

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ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE

The Reorganization Transactions

Prior to the completion of this offering, we will consummate an internal reorganization, which we refer to as the “reorganization transactions.” Prior to the commencement of the reorganization transactions, all of Guild Mortgage Co.’s outstanding equity interests were owned by MCMI and certain other stockholders through their interests in Guild Investors, LLC. In connection with the reorganization transactions, the following steps have occurred or will occur:

 

•

the Issuer was incorporated in Delaware as a wholly owned subsidiary of Guild Investors, LLC on August 11, 2020;

 

•

in October 2020, Guild Mortgage Co. declared and paid cash dividends to Guild Investors, LLC in an aggregate amount of approximately $27.2 million;

 

•

Guild Investors, LLC will contribute 100% of the shares of Guild Mortgage Co. to the Issuer, making Guild Mortgage Co. a wholly owned subsidiary of the Issuer, and Guild Mortgage Co. will then be converted into a limited liability company;

 

•

the Issuer will amend and restate its certificate of incorporation to, among other things: (1) authorize the issuance of two classes of common stock: Class A common stock and Class B common stock and (2) effect a reclassification and stock split of its 100 existing shares of common stock into 14,766,709 shares of Class A common stock and 45,233,291 shares of Class B common stock; and

 

•

Guild Investors, LLC will be dissolved and its members will receive a pro rata liquidating distribution of shares of the Issuer’s common stock (with MCMI receiving shares of the Issuer’s Class B common stock and all other members receiving shares of the Issuer’s Class A common stock).

The reorganization transactions are intended, among other things, to provide for the Issuer in this offering to be a Delaware corporation and to simplify the organizational structure for Guild Mortgage Co.’s equityholders prior to this offering.

 

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