STEALTHGAS INC. Reports First Quarter 2020 Financial And Operating Results

ATHENS, Greece, May 26, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- STEALTHGAS INC. (NASDAQ: GASS), a ship-owning company primarily serving the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) sector of the international shipping industry, announced today its unaudited financial and operating results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2020.

OPERATIONAL AND FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

• Operational utilization of 97.8% mainly due to few of our ships being in the spot market - equivalent to 8.4% of voyage days.
• Only 23 days of technical off hire of which 21 days related to a technical failure of one LPG vessel.
• Fleet calendar days, down 11.9% quarter over quarter to 3,811, attributed to our strategic fleet contraction.
• About 69% of fleet days secured on period charters for the remainder of 2020, with total fleet employment days for all subsequent periods representing approximately $126 million in contracted revenues. Period coverage for 2021 is currently 31%.
• Voyage revenues of $34.4 million in Q1 ’20, a decrease of $4.0 million compared to Q1 ’19 following the net reduction of our average owned fleet by four vessels, two fewer chartered-in vessels and one vessel- previously on time charter- which commenced a bareboat charter at the end of 2019.
• Net Income of $3.0 million for the first quarter of 2020, corresponding to an EPS of $0.08.
• EBITDA of $16.5 million in Q1 ’20 (48% EBITDA Margin), compared to $17.1 million in Q1 ’19 (45% EBITDA Margin).
• Low gearing, as debt to assets stands at 37.6%, largely due to our intense repayment schedule.
• Total cash of $42.6 million- expected to increase by about $25 million in Q2 ‘20 following the financing of the three Medium Gas Carriers owned by our newly established Joint Venture. This financing has already been concluded. The increase will be effected through a return of equity by the Joint Venture arrangement.
• Purchased, through a tender offer, almost 1.4 million of GASS shares for a total consideration of $2.9 million during April 2020.

First Quarter 2020 Results:

• Revenues for the three months ended March 31, 2020 amounted to $34.4 million, a decrease of $4.0 million, or 10.4%, compared to revenues of $38.4 million for the three months ended March 31, 2019, following the net reduction of our average owned fleet by four vessels, two fewer chartered-in vessels and one vessel- previously on time charter- which commenced a bareboat charter at the end of 2019.
• Voyage expenses and vessels’ operating expenses for the three months ended March 31, 2020 were $2.8 million and $13.2 million respectively, compared to $3.8 million and $12.9 million respectively, for the three months ended March 31, 2019. The $1.0 million decrease in voyage expenses was mainly attributed to a 43.2% quarter-on-quarter reduction of spot days. The 2.3% increase in vessels’ operating expenses compared to the same period of 2019, is a result of unexpected costs incurred- of about $1 million- relating to the technical damage of one LPG vessel. We expect that the majority of this amount will be covered by insurance and reimbursed in the upcoming quarters of this year.
• Drydocking costs for the three months ended March 31, 2020 and 2019 were $0.2 million and $0.2 million, respectively. Drydocking expenses during the first quarter of 2020 relate to a drydocking in progress, while the drydocking survey of one small LPG vessel was completed in the same period of 2019.
• General and Administrative expenses for the three months ended March 31, 2020 amounted to $0.6 million compared to $1.1 million for the same period of last year. This decrease is mainly attributed to the fact that for the three months ended March 31, 2019 share based compensation expense was incurred, which was not the case for the three months ended March 31, 2020 since all the shares awarded under our equity compensation plan vested in August 2019.
• Depreciation for the three months ended March 31, 2020 was $9.3 million, a $0.2 million decrease from $9.5 million for the same period of last year due to the decrease of the average number of our vessels.
• Interest and finance costs for the three months ended March 31, 2020 and 2019 were $4.2 million and $6.0 million, respectively. The $1.8 million decrease from the same period of last year is mostly due to the decrease of our indebtedness and the decline of LIBOR rates.
• As a result of the above, for the three months ended March 31, 2020, the Company reported Net income of $3.0 million, compared to a net income of $2.0 million for the three months ended March 31, 2019. The weighted average number of shares for the three months ended March 31, 2020 and March 31, 2019 was 39.4 million and 39.9 million, respectively.
• Earnings per share, basic and diluted, for the three months ended March 31, 2020 amounted to $0.08 compared to earnings per share of $0.05 for the same period of last year.
• Adjusted net income was $3.1 million or $0.08 earnings per share for the three months ended March 31, 2020 compared to adjusted net income of $2.1 million or $0.05 earnings per share for the same period of last year.
• EBITDA for the three months ended March 31, 2020 amounted to $16.5 million. Reconciliations of Adjusted Net Income, EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA to Net Income are set forth below.
• An average of 41.0 vessels were owned by the Company during the three months ended March 31, 2020, compared to 45.4 vessels for the same period of 2019.

Fleet Update Since Previous Announcement

The Company announced the conclusion of the following four chartering arrangements:

• A two year time charter for its 2008 built product tanker, the Clean Thrasher, to a National Oil Company until June 2022.
• A one year time charter for its 2010 built Aframax tanker, the Stealth Berana, to a National Oil Company until April 2021.
• A six months time charter extension for its 2011 built LPG carrier, the Gas Elixir, to a Major Energy Trader until December 2020.
• A four months time charter extension for its 1995 built LPG carrier, the Gas Pasha, to a Major Energy Trader until November 2020.

With these charters, the Company has total contracted revenues of approximately $126 million. Total anticipated voyage days of our fleet is 69% covered for the remainder of 2020 and currently, 31% for 2021.

Board Chairman Michael Jolliffe Commented

The first quarter of 2020 commenced quite promisingly as per our performance and profitability. Indeed, we are pleased that we generated net income of close to $3 million with a very strong operational utilization of 98%. However, the COVID-19 outbreak has startled not only the shipping markets but also the global economy. Future periods are governed by a question mark around LPG demand and period activity. In the short run, market has deteriorated and although StealthGas is quite protected due to high period coverage and low debt no prediction can be made as for how long the COVID-19 pandemic will be the major global concern- severely affecting the whole of the shipping industry. A second wave of this pandemic outbreak may hit this winter, and StealthGas is already taking a defensive position in order to ride this storm as smoothly as possible.

Conference Call details:

On May 26, 2020 at 11:00 am ET, the company’s management will host a conference call to discuss the results and the company’s operations and outlook.

Participants should dial into the call 10 minutes before the scheduled time using the following numbers: +1 866 280 1157 (US Toll Free Dial In) or 08006941461 (UK Toll Free Dial In).
Access Code: 5160967

In case of any problems with the above numbers, please dial +1 6467871226 (US Toll Dial In), +44 (0) 8444936766 (UK Toll Dial In).
Access Code: 5160967

A telephonic replay of the conference call will be available until June 2, 2020 by dialing +1 (917) 677-7532 (US Local Dial In), +44 (0) 3333009785 (Standard International Dial In).
Access Code: 5160967

Slides and audio webcast:

There will also be a live and then archived webcast of the conference call, through the STEALTHGAS INC. website (www.stealthgas.com). Participants to the live webcast should register on the website approximately 10 minutes prior to the start of the webcast.

About STEALTHGAS INC.

StealthGas Inc. is a ship-owning company primarily serving the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) sector of the international shipping industry.  StealthGas Inc. has a fleet of 50 vessels. The fleet is comprised of 46 LPG carriers, including eight Joint Venture vessels and an 11,000 cbm newbuilding pressurized LPG carrier with expected delivery in 2021. These LPG vessels have a total capacity of 431,527 cubic meters (cbm). The Company also owns three M.R. product tankers and one Aframax oil tanker with a total capacity of 255,804 deadweight tons (dwt). StealthGas Inc.’s shares are listed on the Nasdaq Global Select Market and trade under the symbol “GASS.”

Forward-Looking Statements

Matters discussed in this release may constitute forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements reflect our current views with respect to future events and financial performance and may include statements concerning plans, objectives, goals, strategies, future events or performance, and underlying assumptions and other statements, which are other than statements of historical facts. The forward-looking statements in this release are based upon various assumptions, many of which are based, in turn, upon further assumptions, including without limitation, management’s examination of historical operating trends, data contained in our records and other data available from third parties. Although STEALTHGAS INC. believes that these assumptions were reasonable when made, because these assumptions are inherently subject to significant uncertainties and contingencies which are difficult or impossible to predict and are beyond our control, STEALTHGAS INC. cannot assure you that it will achieve or accomplish these expectations, beliefs or projections. Important factors that, in our view, could cause actual results to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements include the strength of world economies and currencies, general market conditions, including changes in charter hire rates and vessel values, charter counterparty performance, changes in demand that may affect attitudes of time charterers to scheduled and unscheduled drydockings, shipyard performance, changes in STEALTHGAS INC.’s operating expenses, including bunker prices, drydocking and insurance costs, ability to obtain financing and comply with covenants in our financing arrangements, or actions taken by regulatory authorities, potential liability from pending or future litigation, domestic and international political conditions, potential disruption of shipping routes due to accidents and political events or acts by terrorists.

Risks and uncertainties are further described in reports filed by STEALTHGAS INC. with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Fleet List and Fleet Deployment
For information on our fleet and further information:
Visit our website at www.stealthgas.com

Company Contact:
Fenia Sakellaris
STEALTHGAS INC.
011-30-210-6250-001
E-mail: info@stealthgas.com

Fleet Data:
The following key indicators highlight the Company’s operating performance during the periods ended March 31, 2019 and March 31, 2020.

1) Average number of vessels is the number of owned vessels that constituted our fleet for the relevant period, as measured by the sum of the number of days each vessel was a part of our fleet during the period divided by the number of calendar days in that period.
2) Total calendar days for fleet are the total days the vessels we operated were in our possession for the relevant period including off-hire days associated with major repairs, drydockings or special or intermediate surveys.
3) Total voyage days for fleet reflect the total days the vessels we operated were in our possession for the relevant period net of off-hire days associated with major repairs, drydockings or special or intermediate surveys.
4) Fleet utilization is the percentage of time that our vessels were available for revenue generating voyage days, and is determined by dividing voyage days by fleet calendar days for the relevant period.
5) Total charter days for fleet are the number of voyage days the vessels operated on time or bareboat charters for the relevant period.
6) Total spot market charter days for fleet are the number of voyage days the vessels operated on spot market charters for the relevant period.
7) Fleet operational utilization is the percentage of time that our vessels generated revenue, and is determined by dividing voyage days (excluding commercially idle days) by fleet calendar days for the relevant period.

Reconciliation of Adjusted Net Income, EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA and adjusted EPS:

Adjusted net income represents net income before loss on derivatives excluding swap interest received, share based compensation, net gain on sale of vessels and gain on deconsolidation of subsidiaries. EBITDA represents net income before interest and finance costs, interest income and depreciation. Adjusted EBITDA represents EBITDA before share based compensation, loss on derivatives, net gain on sale of vessels and gain on deconsolidation of subsidiaries. Adjusted EPS represents Adjusted net income divided by the weighted average number of shares. EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA, adjusted net income and adjusted EPS are not recognized measurements under U.S. GAAP. Our calculation of EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA, adjusted net income and adjusted EPS may not be comparable to that reported by other companies in the shipping or other industries.  In evaluating Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted net income and Adjusted EPS, you should be aware that in the future we may incur expenses that are the same as or similar to some of the adjustments in this presentation.

EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA, adjusted net income and adjusted EPS are included herein because they are a basis, upon which we assess our financial performance. They allow us to present our performance from period to period on a comparable basis and provide additional information on fleet operational results to investors.