ATLANTA, Feb. 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta (the Bank) today released preliminary unaudited financial highlights for the quarter and year ended December 31, 2019. All numbers reported below for 2019 are approximate until the Bank announces audited financial results in its Form 10-K filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which is expected to be filed on or about March 5, 2020.

The Bank reported net income of $97 million for the fourth quarter of 2019, an increase of $9 million from net income of $88 million for the fourth quarter of 2018. The increase in net income for the fourth quarter of 2019 was primarily due to changes in interest rates. The Bank reported net income of $367 million for 2019, a decrease of $49 million from net income of $416 million for 2018. The decrease in net income was primarily related to a decrease in outstanding advances during 2019 compared to 2018. Additionally, changes in interest rates and their subsequent impact on the Bank’s derivative positions, interest-earning assets, and interest-bearing liabilities contributed to the decrease in net income during 2019. These changes in interest rates impacted interest expense related to interest-bearing liabilities more than the offsetting interest income related to interest-earning assets.

As of December 31, 2019, the Bank had total assets of $149.9 billion, a decrease of $4.6 billion, or 2.99 percent, from December 31, 2018. The Bank's advances were $97.2 billion as of December 31, 2019, a decrease of $11.3 billion, or 10.4 percent, from December 31, 2018. The Bank's retained earnings balance was $2.2 billion as of December 31, 2019, an increase of $43 million, or 2.04 percent, from December 31, 2018. Capital stock was $5.0 billion as of December 31, 2019, a decrease of $498 million, or 9.09 percent, from December 31, 2018.

The Bank's 2019 performance resulted in a return on average equity (ROE) of 5.09 percent as compared to 5.54 percent for 2018. The ROE spread to average three-month LIBOR decreased to 276 basis points for 2019, as compared to 323 basis points for 2018. As of December 31, 2019, the Bank was in compliance with its regulatory capital requirements.

Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta
Financial Highlights
(Preliminary and unaudited)
(Dollars in millions)

		As of December 31,
Statements of Condition		2019				2018
	Advances	$	97,167			$	108,462
	Investments	50,617				44,309
	Mortgage loans held for portfolio, net	296				360
	Total assets	149,857				154,476
	Consolidated obligations, net	140,637				145,139
	Total capital stock	4,988				5,486
	Retained earnings	2,153				2,110
	Accumulated other comprehensive income	22				51
	Total capital	7,163				7,647
	Capital-to-assets ratio (GAAP)	4.78%				4.95%
	Capital-to-assets ratio (Regulatory)	4.77%				4.92%

		Three Months Ended December 31,								Years Ended December 31,
Operating Results and Performance Ratios		2019				2018				2019				2018
	Net interest income	$	141			$	152			$	535			$	561
	Net impairment losses recognized in earnings		(6	)			(2	)			(13	)			(3	)
	Standby letters of credit fees		6				6				24				25
	Other income (expense)		3				(20	)			8				29
	Total noninterest expense		36				38				146				150
	Affordable Housing Program assessment		11				10				41				46
	Net income		97				88				367				416
	Return on average assets		0.25%				0.24%				0.25%				0.27%
	Return on average equity		5.26%				4.73%				5.09%				5.54%

Additional financial information concerning the Bank's results of operations for the most recently completed quarter and year ended December 31, 2019, will  available in the Bank's Form 10-K that the Bank expects to file on or about March 5, 2020, with the Securities and Exchange Commission and will be available at www.fhlbatl.com or www.sec.gov.

About the Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta
FHLBank Atlanta offers competitively-priced financing, community development grants, and other banking services to help member financial institutions make affordable home mortgages and provide economic development credit to neighborhoods and communities. The Bank's members—its shareholders and customers—are commercial banks, credit unions, savings institutions, community development financial institutions, and insurance companies located in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and the District of Columbia. FHLBank Atlanta is one of 11 district banks in the Federal Home Loan Bank System. Since 1990, the FHLBanks have awarded approximately $6.2 billion in Affordable Housing Program funds, assisting more than 911,000 households.

For more information, visit our website at www.fhlbatl.com.

Some of the statements made in this announcement are “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, which include statements with respect to the Bank's beliefs, plans, objectives, goals, expectations, anticipations, assumptions, estimates, intentions, and future performance, and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors, many of which may be beyond the Bank's control, and which may cause the Bank's actual results, performance, or achievements to be materially different from the future results, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements.

The forward-looking statements may not be realized due to a variety of factors, including without limitation any one or more of the following factors: legislative, regulatory and accounting actions, changes, approvals or requirements; completion of the Bank’s financial closing procedures and final accounting adjustments for the most recently completed quarter; uncertainties relating to the potential phase-out of LIBOR; future economic and market conditions (including the housing market); changes in demand for advances or consolidated obligations of the Bank and/or the FHLBank System; changes in interest rates; changes in prepayment speeds, default rates, delinquencies, and losses on mortgage-backed securities; volatility of market prices, rates and indices that could affect the value of financial instruments; changes in credit ratings and/or the terms of derivative transactions; changes in product offerings; political, national, and world events; disruptions in information systems; membership changes; and adverse developments or events affecting or involving other Federal Home Loan Banks or the FHLBank System in general. Additional factors that might cause the Bank's results to differ from these forward-looking statements are provided in detail in the Bank’s filings with the SEC, which are available at www.fhlbatl.com and www.sec.gov.

New factors may emerge, and it is not possible for us to predict the nature of each new factor, or assess its potential impact, on our business and financial condition. Given these uncertainties, we caution you not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. These statements speak only as of the date that they are made, and the Bank has no obligation and does not undertake to publicly update, revise, or correct any of the forward-looking statements after the date of this announcement, or after the respective dates on which such statements otherwise are made, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise, except as may be required by law.

CONTACT: Peter E. Garuccio
Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta
pgaruccio@fhlbatl.com 
404.888.8143