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RAND CAPITAL CORP - Quarter Report: 2010 March (Form 10-Q)

10-Q
Table of Contents

 
 
UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 10-Q
     
þ   QUARTERLY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
For the quarter ended March 31, 2010
     
o   TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
For the Transition Period from                      to                     
Commission File Number: 814-00235
Rand Capital Corporation
(Exact Name of Registrant as specified in its Charter)
     
New York   16-0961359
(State or Other Jurisdiction of Incorporation or organization)   (IRS Employer Identification No.)
     
2200 Rand Building, Buffalo, NY   14203
(Address of Principal executive offices)   (Zip Code)
(716) 853-0802
(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes þ No o
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer” and “smaller reporting company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.
             
Large accelerated filer o   Accelerated filer o   Non-accelerated filer þ   Smaller reporting company o
        (Do not check if a smaller reporting company)    
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act). Yes o No þ
As of May 10, 2010 there were 6,818,934 shares of the registrant’s common stock outstanding.
 
 

 

 


 

RAND CAPITAL CORPORATION
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 Exhibit 31.1
 Exhibit 31.2
 Exhibit 32.1
 Exhibit 32.2

 

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PART I.
FINANCIAL INFORMATION
Item 1.   Financial Statements and Supplementary Data
RAND CAPITAL CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARY
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF FINANCIAL POSITION
As of March 31, 2010 and December 31, 2009
                 
    March 31,     December 31,  
    2010     2009  
    (Unaudited)        
ASSETS
               
Investments at fair value (identified cost: 3/31/10 — $15,826,011; 12/31/09 — $14,767,920)
  $ 24,554,236     $ 24,296,145  
Cash and cash equivalents
    7,560,176       9,417,236  
Interest receivable (net of allowance — $209,089)
    1,287,563       1,192,118  
Other assets
    813,446       725,872  
 
           
 
               
Total assets
  $ 34,215,421     $ 35,631,371  
 
           
 
               
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY (NET ASSETS)
               
Liabilities:
               
Debentures guaranteed by the SBA
  $ 10,000,000     $ 9,100,000  
Deferred tax liability
    1,449,423       1,809,000  
Income taxes payable
    88,026       1,082,646  
Accounts payable and accrued expenses
    149,048       431,233  
Deferred revenue
    2,308       2,611  
 
           
Total liabilities
    11,688,805       12,425,490  
 
               
Stockholders’ equity (net assets):
               
Common stock, $.10 par; shares authorized 10,000,000; shares issued 6,863,034
    686,304       686,304  
Capital in excess of par value
    10,581,789       10,581,789  
Accumulated net investment (loss)
    (5,121,114 )     (4,961,725 )
Undistributed net realized gain on investments
    10,897,390       10,897,390  
Net unrealized appreciation on investments
    5,529,453       6,049,329  
Treasury stock, at cost, 44,100 shares
    (47,206 )     (47,206 )
 
           
Net assets (per share 3/31/10 — $3.30 , 12/31/09 — $3.40)
    22,526,616       23,205,881  
 
           
 
               
Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity (net assets)
  $ 34,215,421     $ 35,631,371  
 
           
See accompanying notes

 

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RAND CAPITAL CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARY
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
For the Three Months Ended March 31, 2010 and 2009
(Unaudited)
                 
    Three months     Three months  
    ended     ended  
    March 31,     March 31,  
    2010     2009  
Investment income:
               
Interest from portfolio companies
  $ 166,497     $ 135,516  
Interest from other investments
    5,184       9,134  
Dividend and other investment income
    13,902       224,526  
Other income
    2,803       9,083  
 
           
 
    188,386       378,259  
 
           
 
               
Operating expenses:
               
Salaries
    115,050       111,922  
Employee benefits
    58,142       36,176  
Directors’ fees
    10,955       10,500  
Professional fees
    58,423       71,221  
Stockholders and office operating
    26,023       34,405  
Insurance
    10,165       14,878  
Corporate development
    9,230       9,534  
Other operating
    2,796       2,453  
 
           
 
    290,784       291,089  
Interest on SBA obligations
    136,444       118,359  
 
           
Total expenses
    427,228       409,448  
 
           
Investment (loss) before income taxes
    (238,842 )     (31,189 )
 
           
Current income tax expense
          102,050  
Deferred income tax benefit
    (79,453 )     (112,000 )
 
           
Net investment (loss)
    (159,389 )     (21,239 )
 
           
 
               
Realized and unrealized loss on investments:
               
Unrealized appreciation on investments:
               
Beginning of period
    9,528,226       13,739,831  
End of period
    8,728,226       13,739,831  
 
           
Change in unrealized appreciation before income taxes
    (800,000 )      
Deferred income tax benefit
    (280,124 )      
 
           
Net decrease in unrealized appreciation
    (519,876 )      
 
           
 
               
Net realized and unrealized loss on investments
    (519,876 )      
 
           
Net decrease in net assets from operations
  $ (679,265 )   $ (21,239 )
 
           
Weighted average shares outstanding
    6,818,934       5,718,934  
Basic and diluted net decrease in net assets per share from operations
  $ (0.10 )   $ (0.00 )
See accompanying notes

 

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RAND CAPITAL CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARY
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
For the Three Months Ended March 31, 2010 and 2009
(Unaudited)
                 
    March 31,     March 31,  
    2010     2009  
Cash flows from operating activities:
               
Net decrease in net assets from operations
  $ (679,265 )   $ (21,239 )
Adjustments to reconcile net decrease in net assets to net cash used in operating activities:
               
Depreciation and amortization
    10,323       8,945  
Decrease in unrealized appreciation of investments
    800,000        
Deferred tax benefit
    (359,577 )     (112,000 )
Non-cash conversion of debenture interest
    (38,402 )     (16,758 )
Changes in operating assets and liabilities:
               
Increase in interest receivable
    (95,445 )     (96,070 )
Increase in other assets
    (75,225 )     (275,256 )
Decrease in income taxes payable
    (994,620 )     (39,506 )
Decrease in accounts payable and accrued expenses
    (282,185 )     (164,387 )
Decrease in deferred revenue
    (303 )     (8,318 )
 
           
Total adjustments
    (1,035,434 )     (703,350 )
 
           
Net cash used in operating activities
    (1,714,699 )     (724,589 )
 
               
Cash flows from investing activities:
               
Investments originated
    (1,055,000 )     (81,756 )
Proceeds from loan repayments
    35,310       16,355  
Capital expenditures
    (846 )      
 
           
Net cash used in investing activities
    (1,020,536 )     (65,401 )
 
               
Cash flows from financing activities:
               
Proceeds from SBA debenture
    900,000        
Origination costs to SBA
    (21,825 )      
 
           
Net cash provided by financing activities
    878,175        
 
           
 
               
Net decrease in cash and cash equivalents
    (1,857,060 )     (789,990 )
Cash and cash equivalents:
               
Beginning of period
    9,417,236       2,757,653  
 
           
End of period
  $ 7,560,176     $ 1,967,663  
 
           
See accompanying notes

 

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RAND CAPITAL CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARY
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CHANGES IN NET ASSETS
For the Three Months Ended March 31, 2010 and 2009
(Unaudited)
                 
    Three months     Three months  
    ended     ended  
    March 31,
2010
    March 31,
2009
 
 
               
Net assets at beginning of period
  $ 23,205,881     $ 20,226,966  
 
           
 
               
Net investment loss
    (159,389 )     (21,239 )
 
               
Decrease in unrealized appreciation of investments (net of tax benefit of — $280,124)
    (519,876 )      
 
           
 
               
Net decrease in net assets from operations
    (679,265 )     (21,239 )
 
           
 
               
Net assets at end of period
  $ 22,526,616     $ 20,205,727  
 
           
See accompanying notes

 

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RAND CAPITAL CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARY
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED SCHEDULE OF PORTFOLIO INVESTMENTS
March 31, 2010
(Unaudited)
                                         
        (b)                           Per  
Company, Geographic Location, Business       Date   (c)             (d)(f)     Share  
Description, (Industry) and Website   Type of Investment   Acquired   Equity     Cost     Value     of Rand  
 
 
Non-Control/Non-Affiliate Investments: (k)
                                       
 
                                       
Mezmeriz, Inc. (g)
  141,334 Series A preferred shares.   1/9/08     4 %   $ 121,509     $ 121,509     $ 0.02  
Ithaca, NY. Developer of micro mirror technology that replaces silicon with carbon fibers in micro-electronic mechanical systems (MEMS) enabling efficient, wide-angle, Pico projectors to be embedded in mobile devices. (Electronics Developer)
www.mezmeriz.com
                                       
 
                                       
Rheonix, Inc.
  9,676 common shares.   10/29/09     3 %     503,000       639,000       .09  
Ithaca, NY. Developer of microfluidic testing devices including channels, pumps, reaction vessels, & diagnostic chambers, for testing of small volumes of chemicals and biological fluids. (Manufacturing)
www.rheonix.com
  (g) 481,430 Series A preferred shares.
50,593 common shares.
                                   
 
                                       
Somerset Gas Transmission Company, LLC (e)
  26.5337 units.   7/10/02     2 %     719,097       786,748       .12  
Columbus, OH. Natural gas transportation company. (Oil and Gas)
www.somersetgas.com
                                       
 
                                       
Synacor Inc. (g)
  234,558 Series A preferred shares.   11/18/02     4 %     1,349,479       4,168,001       .61  
Buffalo, NY. Develops provisioning platforms for aggregation and delivery of content and services across multiple digital devices. (Software)
www.synacor.com
  600,000 Series B preferred shares.
240,378 Series C preferred shares.
897,438 common shares.
                                   
 
                                       
Subtotal Non-Control/Non-Affiliate Investments
                  $ 2,693,085     $ 5,715,258     $ 0.84  
 
                                       
Affiliate Investments: (l)
                                       
 
                                       
Carolina Skiff LLC (e)(g)
Waycross, GA. Manufacturer of fresh water, ocean fishing and pleasure boats. (Manufacturing)
www.carolinaskiff.com
  $985,000 Class A preferred membership interest at 14%. Redeemable January 31, 2010. $500,000 subordinated promissory note at 14% due December 31, 2016. 6.0825% Class A common membership interest.
(j) Interest receivable $773,856.
  1/30/04     6 %   $ 1,500,000     $ 1,500,000     $ 0.22  
 
                                       
EmergingMed.com, Inc. (g)(h)
New York, NY. Cancer clinical trial matching and referral service. (Software)
www.emergingmed.com
  $500,000 senior subordinated note at 10% due December 19, 2010. Warrants for 7.0% of common stock.
(j) Interest receivable $213,125.
  12/19/05     7 %     458,333       458,333       .07  
 
                                       
GridApp Systems, Inc. (g)
New York, NY. Provider of database automation software that helps businesses gain control of their heterogeneous database applications through a centralized software console. (Software)
www.gridapp.com
  1,309,375 Series A-1 preferred shares. 584,480 common shares. 8% cumulative dividend.   11/25/08     14 %     1,577,708       1,281,773       .19  
 
                                       
Innov-X Systems, Inc. (g)
Woburn, MA. Manufactures portable x-ray fluorescence (XRF) analyzers used in metals/alloy analysis. (Manufacturing)
www.innovxsys.com
  (e)$250,000 note at 11% due March 31, 2017. 2,642 Series A preferred stock. 8% cumulative dividend. Warrants for 21,924 common shares.
(j) Interest receivable $262,411.
  9/27/04     9 %     1,250,000       5,500,000       .81  

 

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RAND CAPITAL CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED SCHEDULE OF PORTFOLIO INVESTMENTS
March 31, 2010 (Continued)
(Unaudited)
                                         
        (b)                           Per  
Company, Geographic Location, Business       Date   (c)             (d)(f)     Share  
Description, (Industry) and Website   Type of Investment   Acquired   Equity     Cost     Value     of Rand  
 
 
Microcision LLC (g)
Philadelphia, PA. Custom manufacturer of medical and dental implants. (Manufacturing).
www.microcision.com
  $775,000 subordinated promissory note at 5%, 6% deferred interest (PIK) due December 31, 2013. 7.5% class A common membership interest.   9/24/09     7.5 %     783,808       783,808       .11  
 
                                       
Niagara Dispensing Technologies, Inc.
  202,081 Series B preferred stock.   3/8/06     14 %     1,798,443       1,319,491       .19  
Amherst, NY. Beverage dispensing technology development and products manufacturer, specializing in rapid pour beer dispensing systems for high volume stadium and concession operations. (Manufacturing)
www.niagaradispensing.com
  (g) 463,691 Series A preferred stock. 518,752 Series B preferred stock.
(e) $300,000 promissory note at 6%, 8% deferred interest (PIK) due July 30, 2011. $200,000 secured convertible note at 14% due February 19, 2012. Warrants for 190,561 class A common stock.
                                   
 
                                       
SOMS Technologies, LLC (g)
Valhalla, NY. Produces and markets the microGreen Extended Performance Oil Filter. (Auto Parts Developer)
www.microgreenfilter.com
  $250,000 secured convertible note at 10% due December 2, 2010. $75,000 secured convertible note at 10% due October 29, 2011.   12/2/08           363,661       363,661       .05  
 
                                       
Ultra — Scan Corporation
  536,596 common shares. 107,104 Series A-1 preferred shares.   12/11/92     4 %     938,164       1,203,000       .18  
Amherst, NY. Biometrics application developer of ultrasonic fingerprint technology. (Electronics Hardware/Software)
www.ultra-scan.com
  (g) 95,284 Series A-1 preferred shares.                                    
 
                                       
 
                                       
Subtotal Affiliate Investments
                  $ 8,670,117     $ 12,410,066     $ 1.82  
 
                                       
Control Investments (m)
                                       
Gemcor II, LLC (e)(g)(h)
West Seneca, NY. Designs and sells automatic riveting machines used in the assembly of aircraft components. (Manufacturing)
www.gemcor.com
  $250,000 subordinated note at 8% due June 28, 2010 with warrant to purchase 6.25 membership units. $500,000 subordinated promissory note at 15% due December 1, 2014. 25 membership units.   6/28/04     31 %   $ 988,573     $ 6,188,573     $ 0.91  
 
                                       
G-TEC Natural Gas Systems
Buffalo, NY. Manufactures and distributes systems that allow natural gas to be used as an alternative fuel to gases. (Manufacturing)
www.gas-tec.com
  28.925% Class A membership interest. 8% cumulative dividend.   8/31/99     29 %     400,000       100,000       .01  
 
                                       
Subtotal Control Investments
                  $ 1,388,573     $ 6,288,573     $ 0.92  
 
 
Other Investments (a)(i)
  Various               $ 3,074,236     $ 140,339     $ 0.02  
 
                                       
 
  Total portfolio investments               $ 15,826,011     $ 24,554,236     $ 3.60  

 

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RAND CAPITAL CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARY
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED SCHEDULE OF PORTFOLIO INVESTMENTS
March 31, 2010 (Continued)
(Unaudited)
Notes to Consolidated Schedule of Portfolio Investments
(a) Unrestricted securities are freely marketable securities having readily available market quotations. All other securities are restricted securities, which are subject to one or more restrictions on resale and are not freely marketable. At March 31, 2010 restricted securities represented 99% of the value of the investment portfolio. Freed Maxick & Battaglia, CPAs PC has not examined the business descriptions of the portfolio companies. Securities with an individual value <$100,000 are included in “Other Investments”.
(b) The Date Acquired column indicates the year in which the Corporation acquired its first investment in the company or a predecessor company.
(c) The equity percentages estimate the Corporation’s ownership interest in the portfolio investment. The estimated ownership is calculated based on the percent of outstanding voting securities held by the Corporation or the potential percentage of voting securities held by the Corporation upon exercise of warrants or conversion of debentures, or other available data. Freed Maxick & Battaglia, CPAs, PC has not audited the equity percentages of the portfolio companies. The symbol “<1%” indicates that the Corporation holds an equity interest of less than one percent.
(d) The Corporation primarily uses the SBA’s valuation guidelines for SBIC’s which describes the policies and procedures used in valuing investments. Under the valuation policy of the Corporation, unrestricted securities are valued at the closing price for publicly held securities for the last three days of the month. Restricted securities, including securities of publicly-held companies, are subject to restrictions on resale, and are valued at fair value as determined by the management of the Corporation and submitted to the Board of Directors for approval. Fair value is considered to be the amount which the Corporation may reasonably expect to receive for portfolio securities when sold on the valuation date. Valuations as of any particular date, however, are not necessarily indicative of amounts which may ultimately be realized as a result of future sales or other dispositions of securities and these favorable or unfavorable differences could be material. Among the factors considered in determining the fair value of restricted securities are the financial condition and operating results, projected operations, and other analytical data relating to the investment. Also considered are the market prices for unrestricted securities of the same class (if applicable) and other matters which may have an impact on the value of the portfolio company. On a consolidated basis the Corporation uses Accounting Standards Codification (ASC) 820 (formerly FAS No. 157) “Fair Value Measurements” which defines fair value and establishes guidelines for measuring fair value. ASC 820 designates the Corporation’s investments primarily as “Level 3” assets due to their privately held restricted nature.
(e) These investments are income producing. All other investments are non-income producing. Income producing investments have generated cash payments of interest or dividends within the last twelve months.
(f) Income Tax Information – As of March 31, 2010, the total cost of investment securities approximated $15.8 million. Net unrealized appreciation was approximately $8.7 million, which was comprised of $12.7 million of unrealized appreciation of investment securities and $4.0 million related to unrealized depreciation of investment securities
(g) Rand Capital SBIC, Inc. investment.
(h) Reduction in cost and value from previously reported balances reflects current principal repayment.
(i) Included in “Other Investments” is 30,500 shares OTC: PHPG.OB, a publicly owned company.
(j) Represents interest due (amounts over $50,000 net of reserves) from investment included as interest receivable on the Corporation’s Balance Sheet.
(k) Non-Control/Non-Affiliate investments are investments that are neither Control Investments or Affiliated Investments.
(l) Affiliate investments are defined by the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (“1940 Act”), as those Non-Control investments in companies in which between 5% and 25% of the voting securities are owned or Rand holds a Board seat.
(m) Control investments are defined by the 1940 Act as investments in companies in which more than 25% of the voting securities are owned or where greater than 50% of the board representation is maintained.

 

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Rand Capital Corporation and Subsidiary
Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements
For the Three Months Ended March 31, 2010 and 2009
(Unaudited)
Note 1. ORGANIZATION
Rand Capital Corporation (“Rand”) was incorporated under the laws of New York on February 24, 1969. Beginning in 1971, Rand operated as a publicly traded, closed-end, diversified management company that was registered under Section 8 of the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the “1940 Act”). On August 16, 2001, Rand elected to be treated as a business development company (“BDC”) under the 1940 Act. In 2002, Rand formed a wholly-owned subsidiary for the purpose of operating it as a small business investment company (“SBIC”) licensed by the U.S. Small Business Administration (“SBA”). The subsidiary received an SBA license to operate as an SBIC in August 2002. The subsidiary, which had been organized as a Delaware limited partnership, was converted into a New York corporation on December 31, 2008, at which time its operations as a licensed small business investment company was continued by the newly formed corporation under the name of Rand Capital SBIC, Inc. (“Rand SBIC”). The following discussion will describe the operations of Rand, its wholly-owned subsidiary Rand SBIC, and the predecessor wholly-owned limited partnership (collectively, the “Corporation”).
The Corporation is listed on the NASDAQ Capital Market under the symbol “Rand”.
SBIC Subsidiary
Since 2002, Rand has operated a wholly-owned SBIC subsidiary in order to have access to the various forms of leverage provided by the SBA to SBICs. Rand operates Rand SBIC, and Rand formerly operated the limited partnership SBIC predecessor of Rand SBIC, for the same investment purposes and with investments in the same kinds of securities as Rand. The operations of the SBIC predecessor were, and the operations of Rand SBIC are, consolidated with those of Rand for both financial reporting and tax purposes.
On May 28, 2002, Rand and the predecessor SBIC subsidiary filed an initial Exemption Application with the SEC seeking an order for a number of operating exemptions that the SEC has commonly granted from certain restrictions under the 1940 Act that would otherwise limit the operations of the wholly-owned subsidiary. After the filing of the Exemption Application, the Corporation had extended discussions with the staff of the Division of Investment Management of the SEC concerning the application. The principal substantive issue in these discussions was the structure of the predecessor of Rand SBIC as a limited partnership.
Rand formed the predecessor SBIC in 2002 as a limited partnership because that was the organizational form that the SBA strongly encouraged for all new entities seeking licenses as SBICs. Rand organized the SBIC subsidiary in a manner that was consistent with the SBA’s model limited partnership forms for licensed SBICs. In that structure, the general partner of Rand SBIC was a limited liability company whose managers were the principal executive officers of Rand.
Under the rules and interpretations of the SEC applicable to BDCs (which the subsidiary SBIC intended to become), if a BDC is structured in limited partnership form, then it must have general partners who serve as a board of directors, or a general partner with very limited authority and a separate board of directors, all of the persons who serve on the board of directors must be natural persons, and a majority of the directors must not be “interested persons” of the BDC. Since the managers of the limited liability company general partner of the SBIC subsidiary were the principal executive officers of Rand, and since both the limited liability company general partner and the subsidiary SBIC were wholly-owned by Rand, Rand believed that the board of directors of Rand was the functional equivalent of a board of directors for both the general partner limited liability company and for the SBIC limited partnership. Nevertheless, the staff of the Division of Investment Management of the SEC maintained the view that if the limited partnership subsidiary was to be operated as a limited partnership BDC in compliance with the 1940 Act, then the organizational documents of the limited partnership would have to specifically provide that it would have a board of directors consisting of natural persons, a majority of whom would not be “interested persons.”

 

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With the approval of the SBA, effective December 31, 2008 Rand merged the Rand SBIC limited partnership into a corporation whose board of directors is the same as that of Rand. The SBA formally approved the re-licensing of the new corporation as an SBIC in February 2009. As a result of the merger, Rand SBIC is a wholly-owned corporate subsidiary of Rand, and its board of directors is comprised of the directors of Rand, a majority of whom are not “interested persons” of Rand or Rand SBIC.
Following this merger, on February 26, 2009, the Corporation filed a new Exemption Application with the SEC seeking an order under Sections 6(c), 12(d)(1)(J), 57(c), and 57(i) of, and Rule 17d-1 under, the 1940 Act for exemptions from the application of Sections 12(d)(1), 18(a), 21(b), 57(a)(1), (2), (3), and (4), and 61(a) of the 1940 Act to certain aspects of its operations. The application also seeks an order under Section 12(h) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 Act (the “Exchange Act”) for an exemption from separate reporting requirements for Rand SBIC under Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. In general, the Corporation’s application seeks exemptions that would permit:
    Rand and Rand SBIC to engage in certain related party transactions that the Corporation would otherwise be permitted to engage in as a BDC if its component parts were organized as a single corporation;
    Rand, as a BDC, and Rand SBIC, as its BDC/SBIC subsidiary, to meet asset coverage requirements for senior securities on a consolidated basis; and
    Rand SBIC, as a BDC/SBIC subsidiary of Rand as a BDC, to file Exchange Act reports on a consolidated basis as part of Rand’s Exchange Act reports.
The SEC has recently granted exemptions in response to other companies’ applications that reflected similar issues and factual circumstances, and Rand believes that it will receive the exemptions it has requested for the operation of Rand SBIC as a BDC subsidiary of Rand.
Note 2. SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES
Basis of Presentation — In Management’s opinion, the accompanying consolidated financial statements include all adjustments necessary for a fair presentation of the consolidated financial position, results of operations, and cash flows for the interim periods presented. Certain information and note disclosures normally included in audited annual financial statements prepared in accordance with United States generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”), have been omitted; however, the Corporation believes that the disclosures made are adequate to make the information presented not misleading. The interim results for the period ending March 31, 2010 are not necessarily indicative of the results for the full year.
These statements should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and the notes included in the Corporation’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2009. Information contained in this filing should also be reviewed in conjunction with the Corporation’s related filings with the SEC prior to the date of this report. Those filings include, but are not limited to, the following:
     
N-54A
  Election to Adopt Business Development Company status
DEF-14A
  Definitive Proxy Statement submitted to shareholders
Form 10-K
  Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2009
Form 10-Q
  Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarters ended September 30, 2009, June 30, 2009 and March 31, 2009
Form N-23C-1
  Reports by closed-end investment companies of purchases of their own securities

 

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The Corporation’s website is www.randcapital.com. The Corporation’s annual report on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K, charters for the Corporation’s committees and other reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) are available through the Corporation’s website.
Principles of Consolidation — The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of Rand and its wholly-owned subsidiary Rand SBIC (collectively, the “Corporation”). All intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation.
Cash and Cash Equivalents — Temporary cash investments having a maturity of three months or less when purchased are considered to be cash equivalents.
Revenue Recognition — Interest Income — Interest income generally is recognized on the accrual basis except where the investment is in default or otherwise presumed to be in doubt. In such cases, interest is recognized at the time of receipt. A reserve for possible losses on interest receivable is maintained when appropriate.
The Rand SBIC interest accrual is also regulated by the SBA’s “Accounting Standards and Financial Reporting Requirements for Small Business Investment Companies.” Under these rules interest income cannot be recognized if collection is doubtful, and a 100% reserve must be established. The collection of interest is presumed to be in doubt when there is substantial doubt about a portfolio company’s ability to continue as a going concern or the loan is in default more than 120 days. Management also utilizes other qualitative and quantitative measures to determine the value of a portfolio investment and the collectability of any accrued interest.
Deferred Debenture Costs — SBA debenture origination and commitment costs, which are included in other assets, are amortized ratably over the terms of the SBA debentures. Amortization expense was $8,622 for the three months ended March 31, 2010, compared to $6,996 for the three months ended March 31, 2009.
SBA Leverage During the three months ended March 31, 2010 the Corporation drew down the remaining $900,000 in SBA leverage.
Net Assets per Share — Net assets per share are based on the number of shares of common stock outstanding. There are no common stock equivalents.
Supplemental Cash Flow Information — Income taxes paid, net of refunds received, during the three months ended March 31, 2010 and 2009 amounted to $994,620 and $141,556, respectively. Interest paid during the three months ended March 31, 2010 and 2009 amounted to $239,054 and $234,200, respectively. The Corporation converted $38,402 and $11,917 of interest receivable into equity investments during the three months ended March 31, 2010 and 2009, respectively.
Accounting Estimates — The preparation of financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

 

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Stockholders’ Equity (Net Assets) — At March 31, 2010 and December 31, 2009, there were 500,000 shares of $10.00 par value preferred stock authorized and unissued.
The Board of Directors has authorized the repurchase of up to 340,946 shares of the Corporation’s outstanding stock on the open market at prices that are no greater than current net asset value through October 22, 2010. During 2003 and 2002 the Corporation purchased 44,100 shares of its stock for $47,206. No additional shares have been repurchased since 2003.
Profit Sharing and Stock Option Plan In July 2001, the stockholders of the Corporation authorized the establishment of an Employee Stock Option Plan (the “Plan”). The Plan provides for the award of options to purchase up to 200,000 common shares to eligible employees. In 2002, the Corporation placed the Plan on inactive status as it developed a new profit sharing plan for the Corporation’s employees in connection with the establishment of its SBIC subsidiary. As of March 31, 2010, no stock options had been awarded under the Plan. Because Section 57(n) of the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the “1940 Act”) prohibits maintenance of a profit sharing plan for the officers and employees of a BDC where any option, warrant or right is outstanding under an executive compensation plan, no options will be granted under the Plan while any profit sharing plan is in effect with respect to the Corporation.
In 2002, the Corporation established a Profit Sharing Plan for its executive officers in accordance with Section 57(n) of the 1940 Act. Under the Profit Sharing Plan, Rand will pay its executive officers aggregate profit sharing payments equal to 12% of the net realized capital gains of its SBIC subsidiary, net of all realized capital losses and unrealized depreciation of the subsidiary, for the fiscal year, computed in accordance with the Plan and the Corporation’s interpretation of such policies. Any profit sharing paid cannot exceed 20% of the Corporation’s net income, as defined. The profit sharing payments will be split equally between Rand’s two executive officers, who are fully vested in the Plan. There were no amounts accrued for distributions pursuant to the Plan during the three months ended March 31, 2010 or March 31, 2009. During the year ended December 31, 2009, the Corporation approved and accrued $133,013 under the profit sharing plan which was paid during the three months ended March 31, 2010. There were no payments under the Plan for the three months ended March 31, 2009.
Income Taxes — The Corporation follows ASC 740 (formerly, FIN 48), “Accounting for Uncertainty in Income Taxes”. ASC 740 clarifies the accounting and disclosure for uncertain tax positions by requiring that a tax position meet a “more likely than not threshold” for the benefit of the tax position to be recognized in the financial statements. A tax position that fails to meet the more likely than not recognition threshold will result in either a reduction of a current or deferred tax asset or receivable, or the recording of a current or deferred tax liability. ASC 740 also provides guidance on measurement, recognition of tax benefits, classification, interim period accounting disclosure, and transition requirements in accounting for uncertain tax positions.
There have been no changes in liabilities recorded for uncertain tax positions in the first quarter of 2010 and the Corporation does not expect that the amounts of uncertain tax positions will change significantly within the next 12 months.
It is the Corporation’s policy to include interest and penalties related to income tax liabilities in income tax expense. There were no amounts recognized for interest or penalties related to unrecognized tax expense for the three months ended March 31, 2010 and 2009.

 

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The Corporation is currently open to audit under the statute of limitations by the Internal Revenue Service for the years ending December 31, 2006 through 2009. The Corporation’s state income tax returns are open to audit under the statute of limitations for the years ended December 31, 2005 through 2009. The New York State Department of Revenue informed the Corporation that it is auditing the Corporation’s New York corporate income tax returns for the years ended December 31, 2005 through 2007. The Corporation expects this audit to be completed during the year ending December 31, 2010. All anticipated adjustments have been recorded as an ASC 740 liability at March 31, 2010.
Concentration of Credit Risk — At March 31, 2010 Gemcor II, LLC (Gemcor), Innov-X Systems, Inc.(Innovex) and Synacor Inc. (Synacor) represent 25%, 22% and 17%, respectively, of the fair value of the Corporation’s investment portfolio.
Subsequent Events — The Corporation made one investment of $225,000 in one portfolio company after the quarter end.
Note 3. INVESTMENTS
Investments are valued in accordance with the Corporation’s established valuation policy and are stated at fair value as determined in good faith by the management of the Corporation and submitted to the Board of Directors for approval. There is no single standard for determining fair value in good faith. As a result, determining fair value requires that judgment be applied to the specific facts and circumstances of each portfolio investment while employing a consistently applied valuation process for investments. The Corporation analyzes and values each investment on a quarterly basis, and records unrealized depreciation for an investment that it believes has become impaired, including where collection of a loan or realization of the recorded value of an equity security is doubtful. Conversely, the Corporation will record unrealized appreciation if it believes that the underlying portfolio company has appreciated in value and, therefore, its equity security has also appreciated in value. These estimated fair values may differ from the values that would have been used had a ready market for the investments existed and these differences could be material if our assumptions and judgments differ from results of actual liquidation events.
In September 2006, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued guidance on Fair Value Measurements. This statement defines fair value, establishes a framework for measuring fair value in GAAP, and expands disclosures about fair value measurements. This statement was effective for financial statements issued for fiscal years beginning after November 15, 2007, and interim periods within those years. On January 1, 2008, the Corporation adopted Accounting Standards Codification (ASC) 820 (formerly, SFAS 157).
The Corporation uses several approaches to determine the fair value of an investment. The main approaches are as follows:
    Market approach — The market approach uses observable prices and other relevant information generated by similar market transactions. It may include the use of market multiples derived from a set of comparables to assist in pricing the investment.
    Income approach — The income approach employs a cash flow and discounting methodology to value an investment.
    The Corporation adjusts valuations if a subsequent significant equity financing has occurred that includes a meaningful portion of the financing by a sophisticated, unrelated new investor.

 

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ASC 820 classifies the inputs used to measure these fair values into the following hierarchy:
Level 1: Quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities, used in the Corporation’s valuation at the measurement date.
Level 2: Quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities in active markets, or quoted prices for identical or similar assets or liabilities in markets that are not active, or other observable inputs other than quoted prices.
Level 3: Unobservable and significant inputs to determining the fair value
Substantially all of the Corporation’s investments are classified in Level 3 due to their privately held restricted nature.
Assets Measured at Fair Value on a Recurring Basis
                                 
            Fair Value Measurements at Reported Date Using  
            Quoted Prices in     Significant     Other Significant  
            Active Markets for     Observable     Unobservable  
    March 31,     Identical Assets     Inputs     Inputs  
Description   2010     (Level 1)     (Level 2)     (Level 3)  
 
                               
Loan investments
  $ 470,506                     $ 470,506  
 
                               
Debt investments
    2,909,528                       2,909,528  
 
                               
Equity investments
    21,174,202     $ 30,498               21,143,704  
 
                       
Total Venture Capital Investments
  $ 24,554,236     $ 30,498     $ 0     $ 24,523,738  
 
                       
 
                               
            Quoted Prices in     Significant     Other Significant  
            Active Markets for     Observable     Unobservable  
    December 31,     Identical Assets     Inputs     Inputs  
Description   2009     (Level 1)     (Level 2)     (Level 3)  
 
                               
Venture Capital Investments
  $ 24,296,145     $ 30,498     $ 0     $ 24,265,647  
 
                       

 

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Assets Measured at Fair Value on a Recurring Basis Using Significant Unobservable Inputs (Level 3)
                                 
    Fair Value Measurements Using Significant  
    Unobservable Inputs (Level 3)  
    Venture Capital Investments  
    Loan     Debt     Equity        
Description   Investments     Investments     Investments     Total  
Beginning Balance, December 31, 2009, of Level 3 Assets
  $ 488,104     $ 3,487,120     $ 20,290,423     $ 24,265,647  
 
                               
Realized Gains or Losses included in net change in net assets from operations
                       
 
                               
Unrealized gains or losses included in net change in net assets from operations
                               
Innov-X Systems, Inc. (Innovex)
                    (800,000 )     (800,000 )
Purchases of Securities
                               
GridApp Systems Inc. (GridApp)
                    481,772       481,772  
Rheonix, Inc. (Rheonix)
                    250,000       250,000  
Niagara Dispensing Technologies, Inc
(Niagara Dispensing)
            206,249               206,249  
Microcision LLC (Microcision)
            125,000               125,000  
Mezmeriz, Inc.
                    21,509       21,509  
SOMS Technologies, LLC (SOMS)
            8,870               8,870  
Repayments of Securities
                               
Gemcor II, LLC (Gemcor)
    (17,598 )     (17,711 )             (35,309 )
 
                               
Transfers within Level 3
            (900,000 )     900,000        
Transfers in or out of Level 3
                       
 
                       
 
                               
Ending Balance, March 31, 2010, of Level 3 Assets
  $ 470,506     $ 2,909,528     $ 21,143,704     $ 24,523,738  
 
                       
 
                               
The amount of total gains or losses for the period included in earnings (or changes in net assets) attributable to the change in unrealized gains or losses relating to assets still held at the reporting date.
                          $ (800,000 )
 
                               
Gains and losses (realized and unrealized) included in Net decrease in net assets from operations for the period above are reported as follows:
                               
 
                               
Net Gain (Loss) on Sales and Dispositions
                             
 
                             
 
                               
Change in unrealized gains or losses relating to assets still held at reporting date
                          $ (800,000 )
 
                             
Assets Measured at Fair Value on a Recurring Basis Using Significant Unobservable Inputs (Level 3)
                 
    Fair Value Measurements Using Significant  
    Unobservable Inputs (Level 3)  
    Venture Capital Investments  
 
               
Beginning Balance, December 31, 2008, of Level 3 Assets
          $ 28,014,282  
 
             
 
               
Realized Gains or Losses included in net change in net assets from operations
             
 
               
Unrealized gains or losses included in net change in net assets from operations
             
 
               
Purchases of Securities
               
Associates Interactive, LLC
  $ 43,518          
Golden Goal LLC
  $ 38,238          
APF Group, Inc
  $ 11,917          
GridApp Systems Inc.
  $ 4,840     $ 98,513  
 
             
 
               
Repayments of Securities
               
Gemcor II, LLC
  $ (16,354 )   $ (16,354 )
 
           
Transfers in or out of Level 3
             
 
               
Ending Balance, March 31, 2009, of Level 3 Assets
          $ 28,096,441  
 
             
 
               
The amount of total gains or losses for the period included in earnings (or changes in net assets) attributable to the change in unrealized gains or losses relating to assets still held at the reporting date.
             
 
             
 
               
Gains and losses (realized and unrealized) included in Net decrease in net assets from operations for the period above are reported as follows:
               
 
               
Net Gain (Loss) on Sales and Dispositions
          $  
 
             
 
               
Change in unrealized gains or losses relating to assets still held at reporting date
          $  
 
             

 

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Note 4. FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
The following schedule provides the financial highlights, calculated based on weighted average shares outstanding, for the three months ended March 31, 2010 and the year ended December 31, 2009:
                 
    Three months     Year ended  
    ended March 31,     December 31,  
    2010     2009  
    (Unaudited)        
 
               
Income from investment operations (1):
               
Investment income
  $ 0.03     $ 0.28  
Expenses
    0.06       0.30  
 
           
Investment (loss) before income taxes
    (0.03 )     (0.02 )
Income tax (benefit)
    (0.01 )     (0.01 )
 
           
Net investment (loss)
    (0.02 )     (0.01 )
Issuance of common stock
          0.61  
Net realized and unrealized (loss) on investments
    (0.08 )     (0.11 )
 
           
(Decrease) increase in net asset value
    (0.10 )     0.49  
Net asset value, beginning of period, based on weighted average shares
    3.40       3.54  
 
           
Net asset value, end of period, based on weighted average shares
  $ 3.30     $ 4.03  
 
           
Per share market price, end of period
  $ 3.72     $ 3.98  
 
           
Total return based on market value
    (6.53 )%     13.71 %
Total return based on net asset value
    (2.93 )%     (3.74 )%
Supplemental data:
               
Ratio of expenses before income taxes to average net assets
    1.87 %     8.52 %
Ratio of expenses including taxes to average net assets
    1.52 %     8.35 %
Ratio of net investment (loss) gain to average net assets
    (0.70 )%     (0.29 )%
Portfolio turnover
    4.4 %     11.3 %
Net assets, end of period
  $ 22,526,616     $ 23,205,881  
Weighted average shares outstanding, end of period
    6,818,934       6,115,081  
     
(1)   Per share data are based on weighted average shares outstanding and the results are rounded
The Corporation’s quarterly results could fluctuate as a result of a number of factors; therefore results for any one quarter should not be relied upon as being indicative of performance in future quarters.

 

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Item 2.   Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
You should read the following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements and related notes included elsewhere in this report.
FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS
Statements included in this Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations and elsewhere in this document that do not relate to present or historical conditions are “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of that term in Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, and in Section 21F of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Additional oral or written forward-looking statements may be made by the Corporation from time to time and those statements may be included in documents that are filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Such forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause results or outcomes to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements may include, without limitation, statements relating to the Corporation’s plans, strategies, objectives, expectations and intentions and are intended to be made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as “believes,” “forecasts,” “intends,” “possible,” “expects,” “estimates,” “anticipates,” or “plans” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Among the important factors on which such statements are based are assumptions concerning the state of the national economy and the local markets in which the Corporation’s portfolio companies operate, the state of the securities markets in which the securities of the Corporation’s portfolio companies trade or could be traded, liquidity within the national financial markets, and inflation. Forward-looking statements are also subject to the risks and uncertainties described in Part II, Item 1A of this report, the text of which is incorporated herein by reference.
There may be other factors that we have not identified that affect the likelihood that the forward-looking statements may prove to be accurate. Further, any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date it is made and, except as required by law, we undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement to reflect events or circumstances after the date on which it is made or to reflect the occurrence of anticipated or unanticipated events or circumstances. New factors emerge from time to time that may cause our business not to develop as we expect, and we cannot predict all of them.
Corporate Structure
The following discussion will describe the financial position and operations of Rand Capital Corporation (Rand), its wholly-owned subsidiary Rand SBIC, Inc. (Rand SBIC), and the predecessor wholly-owned limited partnership (collectively, the “Corporation”).
Rand is incorporated in New York and has elected to operate as a business development company (“BDC”) under the 1940 Act. Its wholly-owned subsidiary, Rand SBIC, operates as a small business investment company (“SBIC”) regulated by the Small Business Administration (“SBA”). The Corporation anticipates that most, if not all, of its investments in the next year will be originated through the SBIC subsidiary.

 

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Business Developments
During 2008 and the first half of 2009, a weak global economic environment caused extreme volatility in the capital and financial markets. During the second half of 2009, the economy started to show signs of improvement, which continued through the first quarter of 2010. To the extent the financial market conditions continue to improve, the Corporation believes its financial condition and the financial condition of the portfolio companies should improve as well. It remains difficult to forecast when future exits will happen, or if the portfolio companies will have sufficient capital to remain viable while their respective markets improve.
Critical Accounting Policies
The Corporation prepares its consolidated financial statements in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), which require the use of estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities. A summary of our critical accounting policies can be found in the Corporation’s December 31, 2009 Form 10-K under Item 7 “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations”.

 

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Financial Condition
Overview:
                                 
    3/31/10     12/31/09     Decrease     % Decrease  
Total assets
  $ 34,215,421     $ 35,631,371     $ (1,415,950 )     (4.0 %)
Total liabilities
    11,688,805       12,425,490       (736,685 )     (5.9 %)
 
                       
Net assets
  $ 22,526,616     $ 23,205,881     $ (679,265 )     (2.9 %)
 
                       
The Corporation’s financial condition is dependent on the success of its portfolio holdings. The following summarizes the Corporation’s investment portfolio at the period-ends indicated.
                                 
                    Increase     % Increase  
    3/31/10     12/31/09     (Decrease)     (Decrease)  
Investments, at cost
  $ 15,826,011     $ 14,767,920     $ 1,058,091       7.2 %
Unrealized appreciation, net
    8,728,225       9,528,225       (800,000 )     (8.4 %)
 
                       
Investments at fair value
  $ 24,554,236     $ 24,296,145     $ 258,091       1.1 %
 
                       
The change in investments, at cost, is comprised of the following:
         
    Amount  
New Investments:
       
GridApp Systems, Inc. (GridApp)
  $ 480,000  
Rheonix, Inc. (Rheonix)
    250,000  
Niagara Dispensing Technologies, Inc. (Niagara Dispensing)
    200,000  
Microcision LLC (Microcision)
    125,000  
 
     
Total of new investments made during the three months ended March 31, 2010
  $ 1,055,000  
 
       
Changes to Investments:
       
Mezmeriz, Inc (Mezmeriz) interest conversion
  $ 21,509  
SOMS Technologies, LLC (SOMS) interest conversion
    8,870  
Niagara Dispensing interest conversion
    6,248  
GridApp interest conversion
    1,774  
 
     
Total of changes to investments made during the three months ended March 31, 2010
  $ 38,401  
 
       
Investment Repayments:
       
Gemcor II, LLC (Gemcor)
    (35,310 )
 
     
Total of investment repayments during the three months ended March 31, 2010
    (35,310 )
 
     
 
       
Total change in investments, at cost, during the three months ended March 31, 2010
  $ 1,058,091  
 
     
Net asset value (NAV) per share was $3.30/share at March 31, 2010 versus $3.40/share at December 31, 2009.
The Corporation’s total investments at fair value, as estimated by management and approved by the Board of Directors, approximated 109% and 105% of net assets at March 31, 2010 and December 31, 2009, respectively.
Cash and cash equivalents approximated 34% of net assets at March 31, 2010 compared to 41% at December 31, 2009.

 

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Results of Operations
Investment Income
The Corporation’s investment objective is to achieve long-term capital appreciation on its equity investments while maintaining a current cash flow from its debenture and pass through equity instruments. Therefore, the Corporation invests in a mixture of debenture and equity instruments, which will provide a current return on a portion of the investment portfolio. The equity features contained in the Corporation’s investment portfolio are structured to realize capital appreciation over the long-term and may not generate current income in the form of dividends or interest. In addition, the Corporation earns interest income from investing its idle funds in money market instruments held at high grade financial institutions.
Comparison of the three months ended March 31, 2010 to the three months ended March 31, 2009
                                 
                    Increase     % Increase  
    March 31, 2010     March 31, 2009     (Decrease)     (Decrease)  
Interest from portfolio companies
  $ 166,497     $ 135,516     $ 30,981       22.9 %
Interest from other investments
    5,184       9,134       (3,950 )     (43.2 %)
Dividend and other investment income
    13,902       224,526       (210,624 )     (93.8 %)
Other income
    2,803       9,083       (6,280 )     (69.1 )%
 
                       
Total investment income
  $ 188,386     $ 378,259     $ (189,873 )     (50.2 %)
 
                       
Interest from portfolio companies — The portfolio interest income increase is due to the origination of several new debenture instruments from Carolina Skiff, Gemcor and Niagara Dispensing in late 2009.
After reviewing the portfolio companies’ performance and the circumstances surrounding the investments, the Corporation has ceased accruing interest income on the following investment instruments:
                         
    Interest     Investment     Year that Interest  
Company   Rate     Cost     Accrual Ceased  
APF
    8 %   $ 631,547       2009  
Associates Interactive LLC (Associates)
    8 %   $ 293,518       2009  
Golden Goal LLC
    13 %   $ 675,652       2009  
G-Tec Natural Gas Systems (G-Tec)
    8 %   $ 400,000       2004  
UStec, Inc. (Ustec)
    5 %     100,000       2006  
WineIsIt.com (Wineisit)
    10 %     801,918       2005  
Interest from other investments — The decrease in interest from other investments is primarily due to lower interest rates in the current year. The cash balance at March 31, 2010 and 2009 was $7,560,176 and $1,967,663, respectively.
Dividend and other investment income — Dividend income is comprised of distributions from Limited Liability Companies (LLCs) in which the Corporation has invested. The Corporation’s investment agreements with certain LLCs require the entities to distribute funds to the Corporation for payment of income taxes on its allocable share of the entities’ profits. These dividends will fluctuate based upon the profitability of the entities and the timing of the distributions.
Dividend income for the three months ended March 31, 2010 consisted of a distribution from Somerset Gas Transmission Company (Somerset) for $13,902. Dividend income for the three months ended March 31, 2009 consisted of a distribution from Gemcor II, LLC (Gemcor) for $224,526.

 

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Other income — Other income consists of the revenue associated with the amortization of financing fees charged to the portfolio companies upon successful closing of Rand SBIC financings. The SBA regulations limit the amount of fees that can be charged to a portfolio company, and the Corporation typically charges 1% to 3% to the portfolio concerns. These fees are amortized ratably over the life of the instrument associated with the fees. The unamortized fees are carried on the balance sheet under “Deferred revenue”. In addition, other income includes fees charged by the Corporation to its portfolio companies for attendance at the portfolio companies’ board meetings.
The income associated with the amortization of financing fees was $803 and $2,083 for the three months ended March 31, 2010 and 2009, respectively. The annualized financing fee income based on the existing portfolio will be approximately $2,300 for the remainder of 2010 and $700 in 2011.
The income associated with board attendance fees was $2,000 and $7,000 for the three months ended March 31, 2010 and 2009, respectively.
Operating Expenses
Comparison of the three months ended March 31, 2010 to the three months ended March 31, 2009
                                 
    March 31, 2010     March 31, 2009     Increase     % Increase  
 
                               
Total Expenses
  $ 427,228     $ 409,448     $ 17,780       4.3 %
Operating expenses predominately consist of interest expense on SBA obligations, employee compensation and benefits, directors’ fees, shareholder related costs, office expenses, professional fees, and expenses related to identifying and reviewing investment opportunities.
The small increase in operating expenses during the three months ended March 31, 2010 can be attributed to the 15% or $18,085 increase in SBA interest expense associated with the additional $1,900,000 in debenture instruments originated in December 2009 and January 2010.
Net Realized Gains and Losses on Investments
There were no realized gains or losses during the three months ended March 31, 2010 or March 31, 2009.
Net Change in Unrealized Appreciation of Investments
The Corporation recorded a net decrease in unrealized appreciation on investments of ($800,000) during the three months ended March 31, 2010. This decrease is comprised of the following valuation changes made by the Corporation:
         
    March 31, 2010  
Innovex
  $ (800,000 )
 
     
Total change in net unrealized appreciation during the three months ended March 31, 2010
  $ (800,000 )
 
     
The Corporation reduced the valuation of its common equity holdings in Innovex by ($800,000) during the first quarter of 2010 due to an updated evaluation of the mergers and acquisition market for similar companies.
The Corporation did not have any unrealized change in its investment value during the quarter ended March 31, 2009.

 

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All of these value adjustments are determined by management and approved by the Board of Directors using the guidance set forth by ASC 820 and the Corporation’s established valuation policy.
Net Decrease in Net Assets from Operations
The Corporation accounts for its operations under GAAP for investment companies. The principal measure of its financial performance is “net decrease in net assets from operations” on its consolidated statements of operations. For the three months ended March 31, 2010, the net decrease in net assets from operations was ($679,265) as compared to a net decrease in net assets from operations of ($21,239) for the same three month period in 2009. The decrease for the three months ending March 31, 2010 is a result of a ($159,389) net investment loss and a net decrease in unrealized appreciation of ($519,876). The decrease for the quarter ending March 31, 2009 can be attributed to the net investment loss of ($21,239) which represents a ($31,189) loss from operations and a net income tax benefit of $9,950.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
The Corporation’s principal objective is to achieve capital appreciation. Therefore, a significant portion of the investment portfolio is structured to maximize the potential for capital appreciation and certain of the Corporation’s portfolio investments may be structured to provide little or no current yield in the form of dividends or interest payments.
As of March 31, 2010 the Corporation’s total liquidity, consisting of cash and cash equivalents, was $7,560,176.
Management expects that the cash and cash equivalents at March 31, 2010, coupled with the scheduled interest and dividend payments on its portfolio investments, will be sufficient to meet the Corporation’s cash needs throughout 2010. The Corporation is also evaluating potential exits from portfolio companies to increase the amount of liquidity available for new investments and operating activities.
Item 3.   Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk
The Corporation’s investment activities contain elements of risk. The portion of the Corporation’s investment portfolio consisting of equity and equity-linked debt securities in private companies is subject to valuation risk. Because there is typically no public market for the equity and equity-linked debt securities in which it invests, the valuation of the equity interests in the portfolio is stated at “fair value” as determined in good faith by the management of the Corporation and submitted to the Board of Directors for approval. This is in accordance with the Corporation’s investment valuation policy. (The discussion of valuation policy contained in Item 1 “Financial Statements and Supplementary Data” in the “Notes to Consolidated Schedule of Portfolio Investments” is hereby incorporated herein by reference.) In the absence of a readily ascertainable market value, the estimated value of the Corporation’s portfolio may differ significantly from the values that would be placed on the portfolio if a ready market for the investments existed. Any changes in valuation are recorded in the Corporation’s consolidated statements of operations as “Net unrealized appreciation on investments.”

 

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At times, a portion of the Corporation’s portfolio may include marketable securities traded in the over-the-counter market. In addition, there may be a portion of the Corporation’s portfolio for which no regular trading market exists. In order to realize the full value of a security, the market must trade in an orderly fashion or a willing purchaser must be available when a sale is to be made. Should an economic or other event occur that would not allow the markets to trade in an orderly fashion, the Corporation may not be able to realize the fair value of its marketable investments or other investments in a timely manner.
As of March 31, 2010 the Corporation did not have any off-balance sheet investments or hedging investments.
Item 4T.   Controls and Procedures
Management report on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting
The management of the Corporation is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting. The Corporation’s internal control system is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance to the Corporation’s management and board of directors regarding the preparation and fair presentation of published financial statements.
Our internal control over financial reporting includes policies and procedures that pertain to the maintenance of records that, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly reflect transactions and dispositions of assets; provide reasonable assurances that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles and that receipts and expenditures are being made only in accordance with authorizations of management and the directors of the Corporation; and provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition, use or disposition of the Corporation’s assets that could have a material effect on our consolidated financial statements.
All internal control systems, no matter how well designed, have inherent limitations. Therefore, even those systems determined to be effective can provide only reasonable assurance with respect to financial statement preparation and presentation. Also, projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.
Management assessed the effectiveness of the Corporation’s internal control over financial reporting as of March 31, 2010. In making this assessment, management used the criteria set forth by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission in Internal Control-Integrated Framework. Based on our assessment management believes that, as of March 31, 2010, the Corporation’s internal control over financial reporting is effective based on those criteria.
This quarterly report does not include an attestation report of the Corporation’s registered public accounting firm regarding internal control over financial reporting. Management’s report was not subject to attestation by the Corporation’s registered public accounting firm pursuant to temporary rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission that permit the company to provide only management’s report in this report.
Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting.
During the quarter ended March 31, 2010, no significant changes occurred in our internal control over financial reporting or in other factors that could significantly affect those controls subsequent to our evaluation, including any corrective actions with regard to significant deficiencies and material weaknesses.

 

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PART II.
OTHER INFORMATION
Item 1.   Legal Proceedings
None
Item 1A.   Risk Factors
See Part I, Item 1A, “Risk Factors,” of the 2009 Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2009. The Risk Factors from our 2009 report on Form 10-K remain applicable with the exception of the following additions:
Fluctuations of Quarterly Results
The Corporation’s quarterly operating results could fluctuate as a result of a number of factors. These factors include, among others, variations in and the timing of the recognition of realized and unrealized gains or losses, the degree to which portfolio companies encounter competition in their markets and general economic conditions. As a result of these factors, results for any one quarter should not be relied upon as being indicative of performance in future quarters.
Item 2.   Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds
None
Item 3.   Defaults upon Senior Securities
None
Item 4.   Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders
None
Item 5.   Other Information
None

 

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Item 6.   Exhibits
  (a)   Exhibits
 
      The following exhibits are filed with this report or are incorporated herein by reference to a prior filing, in accordance with Rule 12b-32 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.
         
  (3)(i )  
Certificate of Incorporation of the Corporation, incorporated by reference to Exhibit (a) (1) of Form N-2 filed with the Securities Exchange Commission on April 22, 1997.
  (3)(ii )  
By-laws of the Corporation incorporated by reference to Exhibit (b) of Form N-2 filed with the Securities Exchange Commission on April 22, 1997.
  (4 )  
Specimen certificate of common stock certificate, incorporated by reference to Exhibit (b) of Form N-2 filed with the Securities Exchange Commission on April 22, 1997.
  (10.1 )  
Employee Stock Option Plan — incorporated by reference to Appendix B to the Corporation’s definitive Proxy Statement filed on June 1, 2002.*
  (10.3 )  
Agreement of Limited Partnership for Rand Capital SBIC, L.P. – incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.3 to the Corporation’s Form 10-K filed for the year ended December 31, 2001.
  (10.4 )  
Certificate of Formation of Rand Capital SBIC, L.P. — incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.4 to the Corporation’s Form10-K filed for the year ended December 31, 2001
  (10.5 )  
Limited Liability Corporation Agreement of Rand Capital Management, LLC – incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.5 to the Corporation’s Form 10-K Report filed for the year ended December 31, 2001.
  (10.6 )  
Certificate of Formation of Rand Capital Management, LLC– incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.6 to the Corporation’s Form 10-K Report filed for the year ended December 31, 2001.
  (10.7 )  
Certificate of Incorporation of Rand Merger Corporation as filed by the NY Department of State on 12/18/08 — incorporated by reference to Exhibit 1(a) to Registration Statement No. 811-22276 on Form N-5 of Rand Capital SBIC, Inc. filed with the SEC on 2/6/09.
  (10.8 )  
By-laws of Rand Capital SBIC, Inc. — incorporated by reference to Exhibit 2 to Registration Statement No. 811-22276 on Form N-5 of Rand Capital SBIC, Inc. filed with the SEC on 2/6/09.
  (10.9 )  
Certificate of Merger of Rand Capital SBIC, L.P. and Rand Capital Management, LLC into Rand Merger Corporation, as filed by the NY Department of State on 12/18/08 — incorporated by reference to Exhibit 1(b) to Registration Statement No. 811-22276 on Form N-5 of Rand Capital SBIC, Inc. filed with the SEC on 2/6/09.

 

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  (10.10 )  
Rand Capital Corporation Amended and Restated Profit Sharing Plan applicable to Rand Capital SBIC, Inc. — incorporated by reference to Exhibit 7 to Registration Statement No. 811-22276 on Form N-5 of Rand Capital SBIC, Inc. filed with the SEC on 2/6/09.*
  (10.11 )  
Form of Subscription Agreement used by Rand Capital Corporation in connection with a private offering of 1,100,000 shares of common stock that was completed on September 4, 2009 – incorporated by reference to Exhibit 99.1 to the Corporation’s Form 8-K report filed on August 13, 2009.
  (31.1 )  
Certification of the Chief Executive Officer Pursuant to Rules 13a-14(a)/15d-14(a) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, filed herewith
  (31.2 )  
Certification of Chief Financial Officer Pursuant to Rules 13a-14(a)/15d-14(a) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, filed herewith
  (32.1 )  
Certification Pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 – Rand Capital Corporation – furnished herewith
  (32.2 )  
Certification Pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 – Rand Capital SBIC, Inc. – furnished herewith
     
*  
Management contract or compensatory plan.

 

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Signatures
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned thereunto duly authorized.
         
Dated: May 13, 2010

  RAND CAPITAL CORPORATION
 
 
  By:   /s/ Allen F. Grum    
    Allen F. Grum, President   
     
  By:   /s/ Daniel P. Penberthy    
    Daniel P. Penberthy, Treasurer   
 
  RAND CAPITAL SBIC, INC.
 
 
  By:   /s/ Allen F. Grum    
    Allen F. Grum, President   
     
  By:   /s/ Daniel P. Penberthy    
    Daniel P. Penberthy, Treasurer   

 

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