Bruce Barnard, Special Correspondent | May 10, 2012 9:35AM EDT
Greek container ship owner Costamare boosted first quarter income 37 percent from a year ago to $24.5 million as charter revenue grew to $100 million from $86 million.
The NYSE-listed company said it has reduced its re-chartering risk with only four vessels coming off hire during the year, accounting for less than 2 percent of its contracted revenue in 2012.
Costamare, which raised around $100 million from a follow on public equity offering of 7.5 million shares in March, said it will be “selective” in its investments in ships.
“We remain returns-oriented and will not seek growth at unjustified prices by assuming excessive market risk,” said Gregory Zikos, chief financial officer.
The company’s strong financial position allows it to “execute quickly” if attractive opportunities arise in a down market or to benefit from the upside of a healthy market environment, Zikos said.
Costamare bought two 1998-built 3,842 20-foot equivalent unit container ships in April for $24.9 million and recouped $12.3 million from selling two 1984-built 2,922-TEU vessels for scrap.
The Athens-based owner has a fleet of 56 container vessels with an aggregate capacity of 326,000 TEUs, including 10 ships on order.
Contact Bruce Barnard at brucebarnard47@hotmail.com.
