Ownership Interests in and Advances to Partner Companies

The following summarizes the carrying value of the Company’s ownership interests in and advances to partner companies.



	March 31, 2018		December 31, 2017
	(Unaudited - In thousands)
Equity Method Companies:
Partner companies	$	98,911	$	107,646
Private equity funds	442		443
	99,353		108,089
Other Companies:
Partner companies and other holdings	13,856		2,762
Private equity funds	1,334		1,334
	15,190		4,096
Advances to partner companies	17,734		22,506
	$	132,277	$	134,691

In February 2018, Nexxt, Inc., formerly Beyond.com, repaid $10.5 million of principal outstanding on a note received in connection with the Company's sale of its interest back to Nexxt for $26.0 million in March 2017. In that transaction, the Company received $15.5 million in cash and a three-year, $10.5 million note for the balance due, which accrued interest at a rate of 9.5% per annum. Interest was payable annually and interest income was recorded as earned throughout the year. The $10.5 million note was fully reserved and had a carrying value of zero as of December 31, 2017. The Company waived the interest accrued to date in connection with the early repayment of the principal balance. The receipt of $10.5 million of cash in February 2018 resulted in a gain of $9.5 million, net of the interest accrued to date, which is included in Equity income (loss) in the Consolidated Statements of Operations for the three months ended March 31, 2018.

In January 2018, Spongecell, Inc. merged into Flashtalking, a privately-held company. The Company received Flashtalking ordinary shares equal to approximately 10% of Flashtalking’s issued share capital at the time of the closing. The Company’s final number of Flashtalking shares will be subject to customary indemnification and working capital provisions and agreements. The Company recorded its ownership interest in Flashtalking at $11.2 million, which reflects its fair value at the time of closing. The Company recognized a gain of $4.0 million on the transaction, which is included in Equity income (loss) in the Consolidated Statements of Operations for the three months ended March 31, 2018.

In February 2018, the Company sold 414,237 shares of Invitae Corporation ("Invitae") common stock on the open market for proceeds of $2.6 million after transaction fees. The Company obtained shares of Invitae in August 2017 when Invitae, a public company, acquired former partner company Good Start Genetics, Inc. In that transaction, the Company received 414,237 shares of Invitae common stock, excluding 124,092 shares of Invitae common stock which will be held in escrow until August 2018. The Invitae shares were classified as Trading securities and recorded at their fair value, which was $3.8 million at December 31, 2017. During the first quarter of 2018, the Company recorded a $1.2 million loss due to a decline in the value of the Invitae shares, which is included in Other income (loss) in the Consolidated Statements of Operations for the three months ended March 31, 2018.

In January 2018, the Company received $0.6 million of proceeds from the sale of the assets of Aventura, Inc., a former partner company that ceased operations and was fully impaired in 2016. The Company recognized a gain of $0.6 million, which is reflected in Equity income (loss) in the Consolidated Statements of Operations for the three months ended March 31, 2018.

The Company discloses aggregate summarized statements of operations for any partner companies accounted for under the equity method that are deemed significant. The following table provides significant partner company operations information for the three months ended March 31, 2018. The partner company results of operations have been compiled from respective partner company financial statements, reflect certain historical adjustments, and are reported on a one quarter lag basis.



	Three Months Ended
	March 31, 2018			March 31, 2017
	(In thousands)
Results of Operations:
Revenue	$	498		$	6
Gross profit	$	(32	)	$	(436	)
Net loss	$	(2,974	)	$	(4,191	)