Two Harbors Investment Corp. Annual report pursuant to Section 13 and 15(d)

Annual report pursuant to Section 13 and 15(d)

Fair Value

Fair Value

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2019

Fair Value Measurements

ASC 820 defines fair value as the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. ASC 820 clarifies that fair value should be based on the assumptions market participants would use when pricing an asset or liability and establishes a fair value hierarchy that prioritizes the information used to develop those assumptions. The fair value hierarchy gives the highest priority to quoted prices available in active markets (i.e., observable inputs) and the lowest priority to data lacking transparency (i.e., unobservable inputs). Additionally, ASC 820 requires an entity to consider all aspects of nonperformance risk, including the entity’s own credit standing, when measuring fair value of a liability.

ASC 820 establishes a three-level hierarchy to be used when measuring and disclosing fair value. An instrument’s categorization within the fair value hierarchy is based on the lowest level of significant input to its valuation. Following is a description of the three levels:


Level 1	Inputs are quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities as of the measurement date under current market conditions. Additionally, the entity must have the ability to access the active market and the quoted prices cannot be adjusted by the entity.


Level 2	Inputs include quoted prices in active markets for similar assets or liabilities; quoted prices in inactive markets for identical or similar assets or liabilities; or inputs that are observable or can be corroborated by observable market data by correlation or other means for substantially the full-term of the assets or liabilities.


Level 3	Unobservable inputs are supported by little or no market activity. The unobservable inputs represent the assumptions that market participants would use to price the assets and liabilities, including risk. Generally, Level 3 assets and liabilities are valued using pricing models, discounted cash flow methodologies, or similar techniques that require significant judgment or estimation.

The following are descriptions of the valuation methodologies used to measure material assets and liabilities at fair value and details of the valuation models, key inputs to those models and significant assumptions utilized.

Available-for-sale securities. The Company holds a portfolio of AFS securities that are carried at fair value in the consolidated balance sheets and primarily comprised of Agency RMBS and non-Agency securities. The Company determines the fair value of its Agency RMBS based upon prices obtained from third-party brokers and pricing vendors received using bid price, which are deemed indicative of market activity. The third-party pricing vendors use pricing models that generally incorporate such factors as coupons, primary and secondary mortgage rates, rate reset period, issuer, prepayment speeds, credit enhancements and expected life of the security. In determining the fair value of its non-Agency securities, management judgment may be used to arrive at fair value that considers prices obtained from third-party pricing vendors and other applicable market data. If observable market prices are not available or insufficient to determine fair value due principally to illiquidity in the marketplace, then fair value is based upon internally developed models that are primarily based on observable market-based inputs but also include unobservable market data inputs (including prepayment speeds, delinquency levels, and credit losses). The Company classified 99.2% and 0.8% of its AFS securities as Level 2 and Level 3 fair value assets, respectively, at December 31, 2019. AFS securities account for 93.7% of all assets reported at fair value at December 31, 2019.

Mortgage servicing rights. The Company holds a portfolio of MSR that are carried at fair value on the consolidated balance sheets. The Company determines fair value of its MSR based on prices obtained from third-party pricing vendors. Although MSR transactions are observable in the marketplace, the details of those transactions are not necessarily reflective of the value of the Company’s MSR portfolio. Third-party vendors use both observable market data and unobservable market data (including prepayment speeds, delinquency levels, discount rates and cost to service) as inputs into models, which help to inform their best estimates of fair value market price. As a result, the Company classified 100% of its MSR as Level 3 fair value assets at December 31, 2019.

Derivative instruments. The Company may enter into a variety of derivative financial instruments as part of its hedging strategies. The Company principally executes over-the-counter, or OTC, derivative contracts, such as interest rate swaps, caps, swaptions, put and call options for TBAs and Markit IOS total return swaps. The Company utilizes third-party brokers to value its financial derivative instruments. The Company classified 100% of the interest rate swaps, swaptions, and Markit IOS total return swaps reported at fair value as Level 2 at December 31, 2019. The Company did not hold any interest rate caps or put and call options for TBAs at December 31, 2019.

The Company may also enter into certain other derivative financial instruments, such as TBAs, short U.S. Treasuries, U.S. Treasury futures and inverse interest-only securities. These instruments are similar in form to the Company’s AFS securities and the Company utilizes third-party vendors to value TBAs, short U.S. Treasuries, U.S. Treasury futures and inverse interest-only securities. The Company classified 100% of its inverse interest-only securities at fair value as Level 2 at December 31, 2019. The Company reported 100% of its TBAs and U.S. Treasury futures as Level 1 as of December 31, 2019. The Company did not hold any short U.S. Treasuries at December 31, 2019.

The Company’s risk management committee governs trading activity relating to derivative instruments. The Company’s policy is to minimize credit exposure related to financial derivatives used for hedging by limiting the hedge counterparties to major banks, financial institutions, exchanges, and private investors who meet established capital and credit guidelines as well as by limiting the amount of exposure to any individual counterparty.

The Company has netting arrangements in place with all derivative counterparties pursuant to standard documentation developed by ISDA, or central clearing exchange agreements, in the case of centrally cleared interest rate swaps. Additionally, both the Company and the counterparty or clearing agency are required to post cash collateral based upon the net underlying market value of the Company’s open positions with the counterparty. Posting of cash collateral typically occurs daily, subject to certain dollar thresholds. Due to the existence of netting arrangements, as well as frequent cash collateral posting at low posting thresholds, credit exposure to the Company and/or to the counterparty or clearing agency is considered materially mitigated. Based on the Company’s assessment, there is no requirement for any additional adjustment to derivative valuations specifically for credit.

The following tables display the Company’s assets and liabilities measured at fair value on a recurring basis. The Company often economically hedges the fair value change of its assets or liabilities with derivatives and other financial instruments. The tables below display the hedges separately from the hedged items, and therefore do not directly display the impact of the Company’s risk management activities.



	Recurring Fair Value Measurements
	December 31, 2019
(in thousands)	Level 1		Level 2		Level 3		Total
Assets
Available-for-sale securities	$	—	$	31,157,154	$	249,174	$	31,406,328
Mortgage servicing rights	—		—		1,909,444		1,909,444
Derivative assets	8,513		179,538		—		188,051
Total assets	$	8,513	$	31,336,692	$	2,158,618	$	33,503,823
Liabilities
Derivative liabilities	$	6,711	$	29	$	—	$	6,740
Total liabilities	$	6,711	$	29	$	—	$	6,740



	Recurring Fair Value Measurements
	December 31, 2018
(in thousands)	Level 1		Level 2		Level 3		Total
Assets
Available-for-sale securities	$	—	$	25,447,447	$	105,157	$	25,552,604
Mortgage servicing rights	—		—		1,993,440		1,993,440
Derivative assets	21,602		298,379		—		319,981
Total assets	$	21,602	$	25,745,826	$	2,098,597	$	27,866,025
Liabilities
Derivative liabilities	$	—	$	820,590	$	—	$	820,590
Total liabilities	$	—	$	820,590	$	—	$	820,590

The Company may be required to measure certain assets or liabilities at fair value from time to time. These periodic fair value measures typically result from application of certain impairment measures under U.S. GAAP. These items would constitute nonrecurring fair value measures under ASC 820. As of December 31, 2019, the Company did not have any assets or liabilities measured at fair value on a nonrecurring basis in the periods presented.

The valuation of Level 3 instruments requires significant judgment by the third-party pricing vendors and/or management. The third-party pricing vendors and/or management rely on inputs such as market price quotations from market makers (either market or indicative levels), original transaction price, recent transactions in the same or similar instruments, and changes in financial ratios or cash flows to determine fair value. Level 3 instruments may also be discounted to reflect illiquidity and/or non-transferability, with the amount of such discount estimated by the third-party pricing vendors in the absence of market information. Assumptions used by the third-party pricing vendors due to lack of observable inputs may significantly impact the resulting fair value and therefore the Company’s consolidated financial statements.

The Company’s valuation committee reviews all valuations that are based on pricing information received from third-party pricing vendors. As part of this review, prices are compared against other pricing or input data points in the marketplace, along with internal valuation expertise, to ensure the pricing is reasonable. In addition, the Company performs back-testing of pricing information to validate price information and identify any pricing trends of a third-party pricing vendors.

In determining fair value, third-party pricing vendors use various valuation approaches, including market and income approaches. Inputs that are used in determining fair value of an instrument may include pricing information, credit data, volatility statistics, and other factors. In addition, inputs can be either observable or unobservable.

The availability of observable inputs can vary by instrument and is affected by a wide variety of factors, including the type of instrument, whether the instrument is new and not yet established in the marketplace and other characteristics particular to the instrument. The third-party pricing vendor uses prices and inputs that are current as of the measurement date, including during periods of market dislocations. In periods of market dislocation, the availability of prices and inputs may be reduced for many instruments. This condition could cause an instrument to be reclassified to or from various levels within the fair value hierarchy.

Securities that are priced using third-party broker quotations are valued at the bid price (in the case of long positions) or the ask price (in the case of short positions) at the close of trading on the date as of which value is determined. Exchange-traded securities for which no bid or ask price is available are valued at the last traded price. OTC derivative contracts, including interest rate swaps, caps and swaption agreements, put and call options for TBAs and U.S. Treasuries, constant maturity swaps, credit default swaps, U.S. Treasury futures and Markit IOS total return swaps, are valued by the Company using observable inputs, specifically quotations received from third-party brokers.

The following tables present the reconciliation for the Company’s Level 3 assets measured at fair value on a recurring basis:



	Year Ended
	December 31, 2019
(in thousands)	Available-For-Sale Securities			Mortgage Servicing Rights
Beginning of period level 3 fair value	$	105,157		$	1,993,440
Gains (losses) included in net income (loss):
Realized (losses) gains, net	(22,055		)	(313,402		)
Unrealized (losses) gains, net	—			(384,257		)	⁽¹⁾
Net gains (losses) included in net income (loss)	(22,055		)	(697,659		)
Other comprehensive income (loss)	(934		)	—
Purchases	14,318			627,815
Sales	—			1,898
Settlements	—			(16,050		)
Gross transfers into level 3	550,695			—
Gross transfers out of level 3	(398,007		)	—
End of period level 3 fair value	$	249,174		$	1,909,444
Change in unrealized gains or losses for the period included in earnings for assets held at the end of the reporting period	$	—		$	(331,919	)	⁽²⁾
Change in unrealized gains or losses for the period included in other comprehensive income (loss) for assets held at the end of the reporting period	$	8,389		$	—



	Year Ended
	December 31, 2018
(in thousands)	Available-For-Sale Securities			Mortgage Servicing Rights
Beginning of period level 3 fair value	$	153,141		$	1,086,717
Gains (losses) included in net income (loss):
Realized gains and (losses), net	(2,538		)	(149,242		)
Unrealized gains and (losses), net	—			80,209			⁽¹⁾
Net gains (losses) included in net income (loss)	(2,538		)	(69,033		)
Other comprehensive income (loss)	(1,960		)	—
Purchases	17,861			988,283
Sales	—			(637		)
Settlements	(153,000		)	(11,890		)
Gross transfers into level 3	91,653			—
Gross transfers out of level 3	—			—
End of period level 3 fair value	$	105,157		$	1,993,440
Change in unrealized gains or losses for the period included in earnings for assets held at the end of the reporting period	$	—		$	68,518		⁽²⁾
Change in unrealized gains or losses for the period included in other comprehensive (loss) income for assets held at the end of the reporting period	$	(1,818	)	$	—

____________________


(1)	The change in unrealized gains or losses on MSR was recorded in loss on servicing asset on the consolidated statements of comprehensive income (loss).


(2)	The change in unrealized gains or losses on MSR that were held at the end of the reporting period was recorded in loss on servicing asset on the consolidated statements of comprehensive income (loss).

The Company transferred certain AFS from Level 2 to Level 3 and from Level 3 to Level 2 based the observability of inputs during the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018. No additional AFS transfers between Level 1, Level 2 or Level 3 were made during the year ended December 31, 2019. Transfers between Levels are deemed to take place on the first day of the reporting period in which the transfer has taken place.

The Company used multiple third-party pricing vendors in the fair value measurement of its Level 3 AFS. The significant unobservable inputs used by the third-party pricing vendors included expected default, severity and discount rate. Significant increases (decreases) in any of the inputs in isolation may result in significantly lower (higher) fair value measurement.

The Company also used multiple third-party pricing vendors in the fair value measurement of its Level 3 MSR. The tables below present information about the significant unobservable market data used by the third-party pricing vendors as inputs into models utilized to inform their best estimates of the fair value measurement of the Company’s MSR classified as Level 3 fair value assets at December 31, 2019 and December 31, 2018:



December 31, 2019
Valuation Technique	Unobservable Input ⁽¹⁾	Range				Weighted Average ⁽²⁾
Discounted cash flow	Constant prepayment speed	12.6	-	16.4	%	14.8%
	Delinquency	0.7	-	1.0	%	0.9%
	Discount rate	6.4	-	7.8	%	7.2%
	Per loan annual cost to service	$63.38	-	$78.04		$66.62



December 31, 2018
Valuation Technique	Unobservable Input ⁽¹⁾	Range				Weighted Average ⁽²⁾
Discounted cash flow	Constant prepayment speed	7.6	-	9.6	%	8.6%
	Delinquency	1.0	-	1.5	%	1.3%
	Discount rate	8.2	-	10.7	%	9.4%
	Per loan annual cost to service	$66.10	-	$77.32		$69.34

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(1)	Significant increases (decreases) in any of the inputs in isolation may result in significantly lower (higher) fair value measurement. A change in the assumption used for discount rates may be accompanied by a directionally similar change in the assumption used for the probability of delinquency and a directionally opposite change in the assumption used for prepayment rates.


(2)	Calculated by averaging the weighted average significant unobservable inputs used by the multiple third-party pricing vendors in the fair value measurement of MSR.

Fair Value Option for Financial Assets and Financial Liabilities

The Company elected the fair value option for its previously held residential mortgage loans held-for-investment in securitization trusts and the collateralized borrowings in securitization trusts. The fair value option was elected to better reflect the economics of the Company’s retained interests. The Company’s policy was to separately record interest income on the fair value elected loans and interest expense on the fair value elected borrowings. Upfront fees and costs were not deferred or capitalized. Fair value adjustments were reported in other income on the consolidated statements of comprehensive income (loss). During the fourth quarter of 2017, the Company sold all of these retained subordinated securities thereby causing the deconsolidation of the securitization trusts from the Company’s consolidated balance sheet. The remaining retained securities are included within non-Agency AFS securities.

The following table summarizes the fair value option elections and information regarding the line items and amounts recognized in the consolidated statements of comprehensive income (loss) for each fair value option-elected item.



	Year Ended December 31, 2017
(in thousands)	Interest income (expense)				Other income			Total included in net income (loss)			Change in fair value due to credit risk
Assets
Residential mortgage loans held-for-investment in securitization trusts	102,886			⁽¹⁾	45,275			148,161			—		⁽²⁾
Liabilities
Collateralized borrowings in securitization trusts	(82,573		)		(22,592		)	(105,165		)	—		⁽²⁾
Total	$	20,313			$	22,683		$	42,996		$	—

____________________


(1)	Interest income on residential mortgage loans held-for-investment in securitization trusts is measured by multiplying the unpaid principal balance on the loans by the coupon rate and the number of days of interest due.


(2)	The change in fair value on residential mortgage loans held-for-investment in securitization trusts and collateralized borrowings in securitization trusts was due entirely to changes in market interest rates.

Fair Value of Financial Instruments

In accordance with ASC 820, the Company is required to disclose the fair value of financial instruments, both assets and liabilities recognized and not recognized in the consolidated balance sheets, for which fair value can be estimated.

The following describes the Company’s methods for estimating the fair value for financial instruments.


•	AFS securities, MSR, and derivative assets and liabilities are recurring fair value measurements; carrying value equals fair value. See discussion of valuation methods and assumptions within the Fair Value Measurements section of this Note 10.


•	Cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash have a carrying value which approximates fair value because of the short maturities of these instruments. The Company categorizes the fair value measurement of these assets as Level 1.


•	Reverse repurchase agreements have a carrying value which approximates fair value due to their short-term nature. The Company categorizes the fair value measurement of these assets as Level 2.

•

The carrying value of repurchase agreements, FHLB advances and revolving credit facilities that mature in less than one year generally approximates fair value due to the short maturities. As of December 31, 2019, the Company held $50.0 million of FHLB advances and $300.0 million of revolving credit facilities that are considered long-term. The Company’s long-term FHLB advances and revolving credit facilities have floating rates based on an index plus a spread and, for members of the FHLB, the credit spread is typically consistent with those demanded in the market. Accordingly, the interest rates on these borrowings are at market and thus carrying value approximates fair value. The Company categorizes the fair value measurement of these liabilities as Level 2.

•

Term notes payable are recorded at outstanding principal balance, net of any unamortized deferred debt issuance costs. In determining the fair value of term notes payable, management judgment may be used to arrive at fair value that considers prices obtained from third-party pricing vendors, broker quotes received and other applicable market data. If observable market prices are not available or insufficient to determine fair value due principally to illiquidity in the marketplace, then fair value is based upon internally developed models that are primarily based on observable market-based inputs but also include unobservable market data inputs (including prepayment speeds, delinquency levels, and credit losses). The Company categorizes the fair value measurement of these liabilities as Level 2.


•	Convertible senior notes are carried at their unpaid principal balance, net of any unamortized deferred issuance costs. The Company estimates the fair value of its convertible senior notes using the market transaction price nearest to December 31, 2019. The Company categorizes the fair value measurement of these assets as Level 2.

The following table presents the carrying values and estimated fair values of assets and liabilities that are required to be recorded or disclosed at fair value at December 31, 2019 and December 31, 2018.



	December 31, 2019				December 31, 2018
(in thousands)	Carrying Value		Fair Value		Carrying Value		Fair Value
Assets
Available-for-sale securities	$	31,406,328	$	31,406,328	$	25,552,604	$	25,552,604
Mortgage servicing rights	$	1,909,444	$	1,909,444	$	1,993,440	$	1,993,440
Cash and cash equivalents	$	558,136	$	558,136	$	409,758	$	409,758
Restricted cash	$	1,058,690	$	1,058,690	$	688,006	$	688,006
Derivative assets	$	188,051	$	188,051	$	319,981	$	319,981
Reverse repurchase agreements	$	220,000	$	220,000	$	761,815	$	761,815
Other assets	$	24,352	$	24,352	74,412		74,412
Liabilities
Repurchase agreements	$	29,147,463	$	29,147,463	$	23,133,476	$	23,133,476
Federal Home Loan Bank advances	$	210,000	$	210,000	$	865,024	$	865,024
Revolving credit facilities	$	300,000	$	300,000	$	310,000	$	310,000
Term notes payable	$	394,502	$	400,000	$	—	$	—
Convertible senior notes	$	284,954	$	299,147	$	283,856	$	281,951
Derivative liabilities	$	6,740	$	6,740	$	820,590	$	820,590

- Definition

The entire disclosure for the fair value of financial instruments (as defined), including financial assets and financial liabilities (collectively, as defined), and the measurements of those instruments as well as disclosures related to the fair value of non-financial assets and liabilities. Such disclosures about the financial instruments, assets, and liabilities would include: (1) the fair value of the required items together with their carrying amounts (as appropriate); (2) for items for which it is not practicable to estimate fair value, disclosure would include: (a) information pertinent to estimating fair value (including, carrying amount, effective interest rate, and maturity, and (b) the reasons why it is not practicable to estimate fair value; (3) significant concentrations of credit risk including: (a) information about the activity, region, or economic characteristics identifying a concentration, (b) the maximum amount of loss the entity is exposed to based on the gross fair value of the related item, (c) policy for requiring collateral or other security and information as to accessing such collateral or security, and (d) the nature and brief description of such collateral or security; (4) quantitative information about market risks and how such risks are managed; (5) for items measured on both a recurring and nonrecurring basis information regarding the inputs used to develop the fair value measurement; and (6) for items presented in the financial statement for which fair value measurement is elected: (a) information necessary to understand the reasons for the election, (b) discussion of the effect of fair value changes on earnings, (c) a description of [similar groups] items for which the election is made and the relation thereof to the balance sheet, the aggregate carrying value of items included in the balance sheet that are not eligible for the election; (7) all other required (as defined) and desired information.

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