Star Bulk reports net profit of $200.1 Mil for the 2nd Q of 2022 and earned back $250 million scrubber investment, within a span of 2.5 years

August 8, 2022

Petros Pappas CEO, Director, Star Bulk

Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (the “Company” or “Star Bulk”) (Nasdaq: SBLK), a global shipping company focusing on the transportation of dry bulk cargoes, today announced its unaudited financial and operating results for the second quarter of 2022. Unless otherwise indicated or unless the context requires otherwise, all references in this press release to “we,” “us,” “our,” or similar references, mean Star Bulk Carriers Corp. and, where applicable, its consolidated subsidiaries.

Financial Highlights

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(1) Adjusted Net income / (loss) and Adjusted earnings / (loss) per share basic and diluted are non-GAAP measures. Please see EXHIBIT I at the end of this release for a reconciliation to Net income / (loss), which is the most directly comparable financial measure calculated and presented in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States (“ U.S. GAAP”), as well as for the definition of each measure.
(2) EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA are non-GAAP measures. Please see EXHIBIT I at the end of this release for a reconciliation of EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA to Net Cash Provided by / (Used in) Operating Activities, which is the most directly comparable financial measure calculated and presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP as well as for the definition of each measure. To derive Adjusted EBITDA from EBITDA, we exclude non-cash gains / (losses).
(3) Daily Time Charter Equivalent Rate (“TCE”) and TCE Revenues are non-GAAP measures. Please see EXHIBIT I at the end of this release for a reconciliation to Voyage Revenues, which is the most directly comparable financial measure calculated and presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP, as well as for the definition of each measure.
(4) Daily OPEX per vessel is calculated by dividing vessel operating expenses by Ownership days (defined below). Daily OPEX per vessel (which excludes non-recurring expenses) is calculated by dividing vessel operating expenses minus any non-recurring items (such as, increased costs due to the COVID- 19 pandemic or pre-delivery expenses, if any) by Ownership days. In the future we may incur expenses that are the same as or similar to certain non- recurring expenses that were previously excluded.
(5) Daily Net Cash G&A expenses per vessel is calculated by (1) deducting the Management fee Income (if any), from, and (2) adding the Management fee expense to, the General and Administrative expenses (net of share-based compensation expense and other non-cash charges) and (3) then dividing the result by the sum of Ownership days and Charter-in days. Please see EXHIBIT I at the end of this release for a reconciliation to General and administrative expenses, which is the most directly comparable financial measure calculated and presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP.

Petros Pappas, Chief Executive Officer of Star Bulk, commented:

“Star Bulk continued its strong performance in 2022, reporting for the second quarter a Net Income of $200.1 million, TCE Revenues of $337.5 million and EBITDA of $251.5 million. TCE for the quarter was $30,451 / day per vessel, a 33% increase YoY and 11% QoQ. Looking to the next quarter, we have covered 61% of our available days for Q3 at a TCE of approx. $29,000/ day per vessel.

As per our established dividend policy, the Board of Directors approved a dividend of $1.65 / share. Star Bulk has distributed $6.55 / share over the last four quarters.

We are pleased to report that as of the end of June, we have earned back our $250 million scrubber investment, within a span of 2.5 years. This investment includes all related capital expenditure as well as the off hire cost to install the scrubbers. With our fleet being ~94% scrubber fitted and the current Hi5 spread at very healthy levels, these scrubbers should augment our profitability for the foreseeable future.

We have continued to optimize our debt since the beginning of the year. We have refinanced approximately $310 million, which will reduce our interest cost by $4.0 million per annum, extend maturities and leave us with twelve unencumbered vessels. In an increasing interest rate environment, through our existing swaps we have fixed our base rate at an average of 45 bps, for an outstanding notional of $783 million and an average remaining maturity of 1.7 years.

Star Bulk’s Board of Directors has established an ESG Committee, which will guide and support management on ESG-related matters. The Committee is comprised of three independent Directors and is another testament to the importance of good environmental stewardship, corporate governance and social consciousness of Star Bulk.

With a limited supply of vessels, the upcoming environmental regulations curbing vessel ordering and speeds, our competitive operating costs and our scrubber equipped fleet, we remain optimistic on the income earning prospects of our company despite a seemingly uncertain macroeconomic environment.”

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