In the Nasdaq-quoted owner’s earnings report its chief executive did acknowledge that the near-term forecast for the dry-bulk and offshore segments still looks grim.
"The drybulk market remains challenging but we feel that we are getting closer to the bottom with each passing day as the increased scrapping activity of older vessels this year indicates,” Economou said.
“With no newbuildings on order, Dryships is better positioned than most of its peers in this downturn and with its large amount of spot market exposure is uniquely placed to take advantage of any increase in freight rates.”
Economou admitted that the outlook for the offshore market “is not as bright as it was a year ago” either but believes Ocean Rig can weather the storm as well.
“Ocean Rig with its modern fleet, solid contract backlog and strong balance sheet, is well positioned not only to weather the storm but also to take advantage of distressed opportunities as they arrive,” he told investors Wednesday.
On the tanker front Economou said the fundamentals for 2015 remain “extremely bullish” and argued that rising rates will be “more fully reflected” in his company’s first-quarter results.
“With few newbuilding deliveries and healthy demand driven by the lower oil price, the strong tanker market should extend well into 2016," he continued.
DryShips reported a net loss of $24m for the three months to 31 December, versus a deficit of $24.4m in the fourth quarter of 2013, despite improved revenue, which rose to $598m.4m from $431.3m year-on-year.
The operator pointed out that the results included a $38.1m impairment charge related to one of its bulkers. Excluding this, the company would have reported a profit of $14.1m, which amounts to $0.02 in earnings per share.
DryShips, which missed analysts’ consensus forecast, reported a full-year loss of $47.5m. Management noted it would have posted a $23m profit for 2014 if it were to exclude write-offs, impairments and other extraordinary items.
