PJT Partners Inc.: Form 10-Q for the period ended Mar 31, 2024

The following discussion and analysis should be read in conjunction with PJT Partners Inc.’s Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements and the related notes included in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.

Our Business

PJT Partners is a premier, global, advisory-focused investment bank that was built from the ground up to be different. Our highly experienced, collaborative teams provide independent advice coupled with old-world, high-touch client service. This ethos has allowed us to attract some of the very best talent in the markets in which we operate. We deliver leading advice to many of the world's most consequential companies, effect some of the most transformative transactions and restructurings and raise billions of dollars of capital around the globe to support startups and more established companies.

For further information regarding our business, refer to “Part I. Item 1. Business” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023.

Business Environment

Economic and global financial conditions can materially affect our operational and financial performance. See “Part I. Item 1A. Risk Factors” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023 for a discussion of some of the factors that can affect our performance.

Mergers and acquisitions (“M&A”) is a cyclical business that is impacted by macroeconomic conditions. There are several factors influencing global M&A activity in the intermediate term, including monetary policy, greater economic and geopolitical uncertainty and global growth. Worldwide M&A announced volumes during first quarter of 2024 were up 38% compared with first quarter of 2023. On an annualized basis, volume was up 10% compared with 20231. How these macroeconomic factors will impact the strength of strategic activity in the intermediate term is still uncertain. While we expect the markets to recover to historical relationships between M&A activity and broader market benchmarks, the pace of such recovery remains unclear.

Global restructuring activity remained strong throughout the first quarter of 2024 due to continued elevated levels of balance sheet restructurings and liability management transactions. A number of factors continue to drive restructuring activity, including higher interest rates, companies proactively managing debt maturities and structural issues facing many industries. Strong levels of restructuring activity continue to be driven by a mix of liability management as well as in-court restructuring assignments as companies, creditors and financial sponsors focus on comprehensive capital structure solutions. Activity in the first quarter of 2024 remained dispersed across a broad cross section of industries and geographies, further demonstrating a multi-year cycle of elevated restructuring activity.

Fund placement activity remained challenged given the global macroeconomic environment and supply of alternative investment opportunities in the market seeking capital. Additionally, limited partners have become more discerning in their deployment of capital for both existing and new fund manager relationships. Investors continue to focus on existing relationships and, as a result, the bar for fund managers to attract new investors remains high as a flight to quality persists. As it relates to private capital solutions, market volatility has increased resulting from sustained inflation, higher interest rates and geopolitical events. As a result, market sentiment has shifted away from highly concentrated portfolio structures in favor of diversification.

1Source: LSEG Global Mergers & Acquisitions Review for First Quarter of 2024 as of March 31, 2024.

Key Financial Measures

Revenues

Substantially all of our revenues are derived from contracts with clients to provide advisory and placement services. This revenue is primarily a function of the number of active engagements we have, the size of each of those engagements and the fees we charge for our services.

We provide a range of strategic advisory, shareholder advisory, capital markets advisory and restructuring and special situations services to corporations, financial sponsors, institutional investors and governments around the world. In conjunction with providing restructuring advice, we may also assist with raising various forms of financing, including debt and equity. Our private capital solutions services include providing General Partner solutions and investing solutions to clients seeking portfolio liquidity, unfunded commitment relief and investments in secondary markets. Our fund placement services primarily serve a diverse range of investment strategies, including private equity, alternative credit/hedge funds and real estate. We advise on all aspects of the fundraising process including competitive positioning and market assessment, marketing materials and related documentation including partnership terms and conditions most prevalent in the current environment. We also provide public and private placement fundraising services to our corporate clients and recognize placement and underwriting fees based on the successful completion of the transaction.

The amount and timing of the fees paid vary by the type of engagement and are typically based on retainers, completion of a transaction or a capital raise. Fees earned for services provided to alternative asset managers are typically recognized upon acceptance by a fund of capital or capital commitments (referred to as a “closing”), in accordance with terms set forth in individual agreements. For commitment based fees, revenue is recognized over time as commitments are accepted. Fees for such closed-end fund arrangements are generally paid in installments over three or four years and interest is charged to the outstanding balance at an agreed upon rate, such as the Secured Overnight Financing Rate or an alternate reference rate, plus a market-based margin. For funds with multiple closings, the constraint on variable consideration is lifted upon each closing. For open-end fund structures, placement fees are typically calculated as a percentage of a placed investor’s month-end net asset value. Typically, we earn fees for such open-end fund structures over a four year period. For these arrangements, revenue is recognized over time as the constraint over variable consideration is lifted. We may receive non-refundable up-front fees in our contracts with customers, which are recorded as revenues in the period over which services are estimated to be provided.

A transaction can fail to be completed for many reasons, including global and/or regional economic conditions, failure of parties to agree upon final terms, to secure necessary board or shareholder approvals, to secure necessary financing or to achieve necessary regulatory approvals. In the case of bankruptcy engagements, fees are subject to approval of the court.

Interest Income and Other – Interest Income and Other represents interest typically earned on Cash and Cash Equivalents, investments in Treasury securities and outstanding placement fees receivable; foreign exchange gains and losses arising from transactions denominated in currencies other than U.S. dollars; sublease income; and the amount of expense reimbursement invoiced to clients related to out-of-pocket expenses. Interest on placement fees receivable is earned from the time revenue is recognized and is calculated as mutually agreed upon with the receivable counterparty. Interest receivable is included in Accounts Receivable, Net in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition.

Expenses

Compensation and Benefits – Compensation and Benefits expense includes salaries, restricted and unrestricted cash awards, benefits, employer taxes and equity-based compensation associated with the grants of equity-based awards to partners and employees. Changes in this expense are driven by fluctuations in the number of employees, the composition of our workforce, business performance, compensation adjustments in relation to market movements, changes in rates for employer taxes and other cost increases affecting benefit plans. The expense associated with our restricted and unrestricted cash award and equity plans can also have a significant impact on this expense category and may vary from year to year. Certain awards are expensed over the requisite service period for partners and employees who are or will become retirement eligible prior to the stated vesting date. Over time, a greater number of partners and employees may become retirement eligible and the related requisite service period over which the expense is recognized will be shorter than the stated vesting period.

We maintain compensation programs, including salaries, annual incentive compensation (that may include components of unrestricted cash, restricted cash and/or equity-based awards) and benefits programs. We manage compensation to estimates of competitive levels based on market conditions and performance. Our level of compensation reflects our plan to maintain competitive compensation levels to retain key personnel and it reflects the impact of newly-hired senior professionals, including related grants of equity awards that are generally valued at their grant date fair value.

Increasing the number of high-caliber, experienced senior level employees is critical to our growth efforts and our continued investment in senior talent may also increase compensation and benefits expense. These hires generally do not generate significant revenue in the year they are hired.

Non-Compensation Expense – Non-Compensation expenses are the other costs typical to operating our business, which generally consist of Occupancy and Related, Travel and Related, Professional Fees, Communications and Information Services, Depreciation and Amortization and Other Expenses. Further information regarding these expenses can be found in “Part II. Item 7. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023.

Income Taxes – PJT Partners Inc. is a corporation subject to U.S. federal, state and local income taxes in jurisdictions where it does business. Our businesses generally operate as partnerships for U.S. federal and state purposes and as corporate entities in non-U.S. jurisdictions. In the U.S. federal and state jurisdictions, taxes related to income earned by these entities generally represent obligations of the individual members and partners.

The operating entities have generally been subject to New York City Unincorporated Business Tax and to entity-level income taxes imposed by state and local as well as non-U.S. jurisdictions, as applicable. These taxes have been reflected in our condensed consolidated financial statements.

PJT Partners Inc. is subject to U.S. corporate federal, state and local income tax on its allocable share of results of operations from the holding partnership (PJT Partners Holdings LP).

The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development ("OECD") Pillar Two Model Rules ("Pillar Two") set forth for a global 15% minimum tax on the income arising in each jurisdiction in which we operate. Many such jurisdictions have implemented or are in the process of implementing Pillar Two and it is expected to be applicable for annual periods beginning on or after December 31, 2023. We are continuing to assess the impact of Pillar Two and do not expect it to have a material impact on the Company’s 2024 condensed consolidated financial statements.

Non-Controlling Interests

PJT Partners Inc. is a holding company and its only material asset is its controlling equity interest in PJT Partners Holdings LP, a holding partnership that holds the Company's operating subsidiaries, and certain cash and cash equivalents it may hold from time to time. As the sole general partner of PJT Partners Holdings LP, PJT Partners Inc. operates and controls all of the business and affairs and consolidates the financial results of PJT Partners Holdings LP and its operating subsidiaries. The portion of net income attributable to the non-controlling interests is presented separately in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations.

Condensed Consolidated Results of Operations

The following table sets forth our condensed consolidated results of operations for the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023:

(Dollars in Thousands)

Revenues

The following table provides revenue statistics for the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023:

Total Revenues were $329.4 million for the three months ended March 31, 2024, an increase of $129.4 million compared with $200.0 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023. Advisory Fees were $288.7 million for the three months ended March 31, 2024, an increase of $120.6 million compared with $168.1 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023. The increase in Advisory Fees was due to significant increases in restructuring, strategic advisory and private capital solutions revenues. Placement Fees were $34.5 million for the three months ended March 31, 2024, an increase of $6.9 million compared with $27.6 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023. The increase in Placement Fees was due to an increase in fund placement revenues. Interest Income and Other revenues were $6.2 million for the three months ended March 31, 2024, an increase of $1.9 million compared with $4.3 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023. The increase in Interest Income and Other was principally due to higher interest income.

Expenses

Expenses were $275.5 million for the three months ended March 31, 2024, an increase of $104.7 million compared with $170.8 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023. The increase in expenses was principally attributable to increases in Compensation and Benefits, Other Expenses, Occupancy and Related and Travel and Related of $95.9 million, $2.4 million, $2.2 million and $2.1 million, respectively. The increase in Compensation and Benefits was driven by the combination of higher revenues and a higher accrual rate compared with the prior year. Other Expenses increased principally due to higher bad debt expense. Occupancy and Related increased principally due to the further expansion and lease term extension of our New York headquarters. Travel and Related increased due to increased levels of business travel.

Provision for Taxes

The Company’s Provision for Taxes for the three months ended March 31, 2024 was $0.5 million, which represents an effective tax rate of 1.0% on pretax income of $53.9 million. The Company’s Provision for Taxes for the three months ended March 31, 2023 was $1.2 million, which represents an effective tax rate of 4.1% on pretax income of $29.2 million.

Non-Controlling Interests

Net Income Attributable to Non-Controlling Interests is calculated by multiplying the Income Before Provision for Taxes by the percentage allocation of the income between the holders of common units of partnership interest in PJT Partners Holdings LP (“Partnership Units”) and holders of Class A common stock of PJT Partners Inc. after considering any contractual arrangements that govern the allocation of income.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

General

We regularly monitor our liquidity position, including cash and cash equivalents, investments, working capital assets and liabilities, any commitments and other liquidity requirements.

Our assets have been historically comprised of cash and cash equivalents, investments, receivables arising from advisory and placement engagements and operating lease right-of-use assets. Our liabilities generally include accrued compensation and benefits, accounts payable and accrued expenses, taxes payable and operating lease liabilities. We expect to pay a significant amount of incentive compensation toward the end of each year and during the beginning of the next calendar year with respect to the prior year’s results. A portion of annual compensation may be awarded with equity-based compensation and thus requires less cash. We expect levels of cash to decline at the end of the year and during the first quarter of each year after incentive compensation is paid to our employees. We then expect cash to build throughout the remainder of the year.

On February 1, 2021, PJT Partners Holdings LP, as borrower (the “Borrower”), entered into a Renewal and Modification Agreement (the “Renewal Agreement”) and related documents with First Republic Bank (now part of JPMorgan Chase), as lender (the “Lender”), amending the terms of the Borrower’s revolving credit facility with the Lender under the Amended and Restated Loan Agreement dated October 1, 2018 (the “Amended and Restated Loan Agreement”). On February 7, 2023, the Renewal Agreement was further amended to extend the maturity date to October 1, 2024. Further information regarding the Renewal Agreement and Amended and Restated Loan Agreement can be found in Note 13. “Commitments and Contingencies—Commitments, Line of Credit” in the “Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements” in “—Item 1. Financial Statements” of this filing. As of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, we were in compliance with the debt covenants under the Renewal Agreement and Amended and Restated Loan Agreement, respectively. Additionally, as of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, there were no borrowings outstanding under the revolving credit facility.

We evaluate our cash needs on a regular basis. As of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, we had cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments of $235.6 million and $436.9 million, respectively. The vast majority of these balances are either held in institutions labeled by the Financial Stability Board as global systemically important banks or Treasury securities. Although we maintain multiple banking relationships with both global and regional banks and actively monitor the financial stability of such institutions, a failure at any institution where we maintain a banking relationship could impact our liquidity.

Our liquidity is highly dependent upon cash receipts from clients, which are generally dependent upon the successful completion of transactions as well as the timing of receivable collections. As of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, total accounts receivable, net of allowance for credit losses, were $325.0 million and $263.5 million, respectively. As of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, the allowance for credit losses was $3.2 million and $2.4 million, respectively. Included in Accounts Receivable, Net are long-term receivables of $84.0 million and $84.4 million as of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively, related to placement fees that are generally paid in installments over a period of three to four years.

Sources and Uses of Liquidity

Our primary cash needs are for working capital, paying operating expenses including cash compensation to our employees, exchanging of Partnership Units for cash, repurchasing shares of the Company’s Class A common stock, paying income taxes, dividend payments, partnership tax distributions, capital expenditures, making payments pursuant to the tax receivable agreement, commitments and strategic investments. We expect to fund these liquidity requirements through cash flows from operations and borrowings under our revolving credit facility. Our ability to fund these needs will depend, in part, on our ability to generate or raise cash in the future which depends on our future financial results, which are subject to general economic, financial, competitive, legislative and regulatory factors.

Additionally, our ability to generate positive cash flow from operations will be impacted by global economic conditions. If our cash flows from operations are significantly reduced, we may need to borrow from our revolving credit facility, incur debt, or issue additional equity. Although we believe that our revolving credit facility, and our ability to renew it, will permit us to finance our operations on acceptable terms and conditions for the foreseeable future, our access to, and the availability of, financing on acceptable terms and conditions in the future will be impacted by many factors, including: business performance; our credit ratings or absence of a credit rating; the liquidity of the overall capital markets; the current state of the economy; and stability of our lending institution. We cannot provide any assurance that such financing will be available to us on acceptable terms or that such financing will be available at all. We believe that our future cash from operations and availability under our revolving credit facility, together with our access to funds on hand, will provide adequate resources to fund our liquidity and capital needs.

Regulatory Capital

We actively monitor our regulatory capital base. We are subject to regulatory requirements in the U.S. and certain international jurisdictions to ensure general financial soundness and liquidity. This requires, among other things, that we comply with certain minimum capital requirements, recordkeeping, reporting procedures, experience and training requirements for employees and certain other requirements and procedures. These regulatory requirements may restrict the flow of funds to and from affiliates. See Note 14. “Regulated Entities” in the “Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements” in “—Item 1. Financial Statements” of this filing for further information. The licenses under which we operate are meant to be appropriate to conduct our business. We believe that we provide each of these entities with sufficient capital and liquidity, consistent with their business and regulatory requirements.

Our activities may also be subject to regulation, including regulatory capital requirements, by various other foreign jurisdictions and self-regulatory organizations.

We do not anticipate that compliance with any and all such requirements will materially adversely impact the availability of funds for domestic and parent-level purposes.

Exchange Agreement

Subject to the terms and conditions of the exchange agreement, as amended, between us and certain of the holders of Partnership Units (other than PJT Partners Inc.), Partnership Units are exchangeable at the option of the holder for cash or, at our election, for shares of our Class A common stock on a one-for-one basis. Depending on our liquidity and capital resources, market conditions, the timing and concentration of exchange requests and other considerations, we may choose to fund exchanges of Partnership Units with available cash, borrowings or new issuances of Class A common stock or to settle exchanges by issuing Class A common stock to the exchanging holder of Partnership Units.

Certain holders of Partnership Units exchanged 0.2 million and 0.1 million Partnership Units, respectively, for cash in the amounts of $18.7 million and $10.7 million, respectively, for the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively.

Share Repurchase Program

On February 6, 2024, the Company announced that the Board authorized a $500 million Class A common stock repurchase program, which replaced the then-existing $200 million repurchase program authorized on April 25, 2022. Under the new repurchase program, which has no expiration date, shares of the Company’s Class A common stock may be repurchased from time to time in open market transactions, in privately negotiated transactions or otherwise. The timing and the actual number of shares repurchased depend on a variety of factors, including legal requirements, price and economic and market conditions. The repurchase program may be suspended or discontinued at any time and does not have a specified expiration date.

During the three months ended March 31, 2024, the Company repurchased 1.1 million shares of the Company’s Class A common stock at an average price per share of $98.55, or $106.4 million in aggregate, pursuant to the share repurchase program. As of March 31, 2024, the Company’s remaining repurchase authorization was $406.3 million.

Contractual Obligations

For a discussion of our contractual obligations, refer to “Part II. Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Contractual Obligations” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023. There have not been any material changes to our contractual obligations since December 31, 2023.

Commitments and Contingencies

Litigation

With respect to our litigation matters, including any litigation discussed under the caption “Legal Proceedings” elsewhere in this report, we are not currently able to estimate the possible loss or range of loss until developments in such matters have provided sufficient information to support such an assessment, including quantification of a damage demand from plaintiffs, discovery from other parties and investigation of factual allegations, rulings by courts on motions or appeals, analysis by experts or the status of any settlement negotiations. While the ultimate outcome and the costs associated with litigation are inherently uncertain and difficult to predict, we believe, based on current knowledge and after consultation with counsel, that we are not currently party to any material pending proceedings, individually or in the aggregate, the resolution of which would have a material effect on the Company.

Guarantee

The Company provides a guarantee to a lending institution for certain loans held by employees for investment in funds of its former Parent, which are secured by the underlying investments in those funds. The amount guaranteed was $2.3 million as of each of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023. In connection with this guarantee, we currently expect any associated risk of loss to be insignificant.

Indemnifications

We have entered and may continue to enter into contracts that contain a variety of indemnification obligations. Our maximum exposure under these arrangements is not known; however, we currently expect any associated risk of loss to be insignificant.

In connection with these matters, we have incurred and may continue to incur legal expenses, which are expensed as incurred.

Tax Receivable Agreement

We have entered into a tax receivable agreement with the holders of Partnership Units (other than PJT Partners Inc.) that provides for the payment by PJT Partners Inc. to exchanging holders of Partnership Units of 85% of the benefits, if any, that PJT Partners Inc. is deemed to realize as a result of the increases in tax basis related to such exchanges of Partnership Units and of certain other tax benefits related to entering into the tax receivable agreement, including tax benefits attributable to payments under the tax receivable agreement. As of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, the Company had amounts due of $31.2 million and $29.7 million, respectively, pursuant to the tax receivable agreement, which represent management’s best estimate of the amounts currently expected to be owed in connection with the tax receivable agreement. Actual payments may differ significantly from estimated amounts due.

Further information regarding the tax receivable agreement can be found in “Part II. Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023.

Other

See Notes 8, 10, 11 and 13 in the “Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements” in “—Item 1. Financial Statements” of this filing for further information in connection with income taxes, equity-based and other deferred compensation plans, leasing arrangements and commitments, respectively.

Critical Accounting Estimates

A discussion of critical accounting estimates is included in “Part II. Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023.

Recent Accounting Developments

Information regarding recent accounting developments and their impact on our financial statements can be found in Note 2. “Summary of Significant Accounting Policies” in the “Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements” in “—Item 1. Financial Statements” of this filing.

Market Risk and Credit Risk

Our business is not capital-intensive and we do not invest in derivative instruments or, generally, borrow. As a result, we are not subject to significant market risk (including interest rate risk, foreign currency exchange rate risk and commodity price risk) or credit risk. Notwithstanding the foregoing, current economic and geopolitical uncertainty and slowing global growth could have a material adverse effect on the Company's condensed consolidated financial statements.

Risks Related to Cash, Cash Equivalents and Investments

Our cash and cash equivalents include short-term highly liquid investments that are readily convertible to known amounts of cash and have original maturities of three months or less from the date of purchase. Cash and cash equivalents are maintained in U.S. and non-U.S. bank accounts and are held at six financial institutions. In addition to cash and cash equivalents, we hold investments in Treasury securities, certain of which are classified as Investments in our Condensed Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition. We believe our cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments are not subject to any material interest rate risk, equity price risk, credit risk or other market risk based on our diversified use of global and regional financial institutions and the short-term nature of the securities.

Credit Risk

We estimate our allowance for credit losses using relevant available information from internal and external sources relating to past events, current conditions and reasonable and supportable forecasts. We maintain an allowance for credit losses that, in our opinion, reflects current expected credit losses. As of March 31, 2024 and December 31, 2023, the allowance for credit losses was $3.2 million and $2.4 million, respectively.

Exchange Rate Risk

We are exposed to the risk that the exchange rate of the U.S. dollar relative to other currencies may have an adverse effect on the reported value of our non-U.S. dollar denominated or based assets and liabilities. In addition, the reported amounts of our revenues may be affected by movements in the rate of exchange between the transaction currency and the U.S. dollar, the currency in which our financial statements are denominated. The principal non-U.S. dollar currencies include the pound sterling, the euro, the Hong Kong dollar and the Japanese yen. For the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023, the impact of the fluctuation of foreign currencies in Other Comprehensive Income (Loss), Net of Tax – Currency Translation Adjustment in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income was a loss of $1.0 million and a gain of $1.4 million, respectively, and in Interest Income and Other in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations, a loss of $0.8 million for each of the periods. We have not entered into any transactions to hedge our exposure to these foreign currency fluctuations through the use of derivative instruments or other methods. Given the geopolitical uncertainty and the ongoing economic impact, elevated interest rates and heightened inflation, exchange rate fluctuations between the U.S. dollar and other currencies could unfavorably affect our condensed consolidated financial statements.

Under the supervision and with the participation of our management, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, we conducted an evaluation of the effectiveness of the Company’s disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”)) as of the end of the period covered by this report. Based upon this evaluation, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures were effective.

No change in our internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f) of the Exchange Act) occurred during our most recent quarter that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.

There were no material changes from the risk factors previously disclosed in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023.

The risks described in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023 and in our subsequently filed Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q are not the only risks facing us. Additional risks and uncertainties not currently known to us or that we currently deem to be immaterial also may materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and/or operating results.