May 7 (Reuters) - BlackRock TCP Capital Corp ( TCPC )

reported a sharp first-quarter decline in net asset value and

earnings on Thursday, as portfolio markdowns and realized losses

tied to restructurings weighed on results despite signs of

balance-sheet improvement.

Net asset value per share fell 4.9% to $6.72 as of March 31

from $7.07 at year-end, reflecting about $35 million of

portfolio markdowns. The investment portfolio stood at $1.39

billion at fair value, compared with $1.54 billion in cost,

implying a fair value-to-cost ratio of about 0.90x.

Net investment income declined to $18.5 million, or 22 cents

per share, from $32.2 million, or 38 cents per share, a year

earlier.

TCPC posted a $16.3 million net decrease in net assets from

operations, compared with a $20.9 million increase a year

earlier. The decline was driven by $32.7 million in realized

losses tied largely to restructurings involving Alpine, Fishbowl

and Suited Connector.

Portfolio activity was dominated by repayments and exits.

TCPC made $22.5 million of new investments during the quarter

while generating $135.3 million from sales and repayments,

reducing total portfolio fair value to $1.39 billion from $1.53

billion at year-end.

Non-accruals fell to 2.8% of fair value from 4.0%, while

net regulatory leverage declined to 1.29x from 1.41x. The

company ended the quarter with about $358.6 million in available

liquidity.