VANCOUVER, March 15, 2017 /CNW/ - Itasca Capital Ltd. (TSX-V: ICL) ("Itasca" or "Company") today filed its audited consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2016 and the related management discussion & analysis, both of which are available under Itasca's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. All amounts are in Canadian dollars unless indicated otherwise.

The Company reported net income attributable to common shareholders of $10.2 million, or $0.47 earnings per share in the fourth quarter of 2016, compared to a net loss attributable to common shareholders of $2.5 million, or $0.06 loss per share in the fourth quarter of 2015.

For the year ended December 31, 2016, Itasca reported net income attributable to common shareholders of $8.9 million, or $0.28 earnings per share, compared to a net loss attributable to common shareholders of $2.9 million, or $0.06 loss per share for the year ended December 31, 2015.

As of December 31, 2016, Itasca reported total shareholders' equity of $23.7 million with a book value per share of $1.09 based on the 21,810,626 issued and outstanding common shares.

Significant events during 2016 included the following:

• A strategic change in the management and direction whereby Itasca retired 54.2% of the total outstanding common shares pursuant to a substantial issuer bid in June 2016 and invested $12.9 million in Class A Interests of 1347 Investors LLC (the "Investment") in July 2016.
  
  
• Change in unrealized gain from the Investment amounting to $10.0 million, $9.7 million of which was recorded in the fourth quarter of 2016.

Management Comments:
Larry G. Swets, Jr., Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, stated, "Since our transition in June of last year, the Board and Management have been focused on creating value for our shareholders as measured by growth in book value per share. We are pleased with the results thus far and believe the 75.3% growth in book value per share from $0.62 to $1.09 in the most recent quarter reflects that effort. We remain pleased with our investment in the Class A membership interests of 1347 Investors, LLC."

Neither TSXV nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

CAUTIONARY NOTE

Book value per share is a non-IFRS measure calculated as the total of shareholders' equity divided by the issued and outstanding shares of Itasca. The term "book value per share" does not have any standardized meaning according to IFRS and therefore may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other companies. There is no comparable IFRS measure presented in Itasca's consolidated financial statements and thus no applicable quantitative reconciliation for such non-IFRS financial measure. Itasca believes that book value per share can provide information useful to its shareholders.

SOURCE Itasca Capital Ltd.

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