Impac Mortgage Posts $55-Million Loss

Impac Mortgage Holdings Inc., a Newport Beach real estate investment trust, posted a second-quarter loss of $55 million, or 78 cents a share, down from a year-earlier profit of $143.2 million, or $2.17.

The company also said it planned to lower its dividend. The combination of bad news, released late Tuesday, sunk Impac’s shares Wednesday. They fell $2.39, or 14.6%, to $13.98.

Impac attributed the loss to a $97.7-million charge related to an unrealized change in the value of its derivative holdings.

Income available to shareholders dropped nearly 30% to $41 million. As a REIT, Impac pays out at least 90% of its income in dividends.

The company plans to lower its quarterly common stock dividend to between 50 cents and 60 cents a share for the third quarter; the payout was 75 cents in the first two quarters.

* Capstone Turbine Corp. reported a fiscal first-quarter loss of $10.9 million, or 13 cents a share, compared with a loss of $10.5 million, or 13 cents, a year earlier. Revenue at the Chatsworth maker of micro-turbines rose 28.8% to $3.8 million.