Nordic American Tankers' fourth quarter may have fallen short of analyst expectations, but the company says its entering a new year with lowest-in-the-industry debt levels.
A boost to its quarterly dividend was a sign of fresh confidence and analysts believe further increases are in store.
The Herbjorn Hansson-led, New York-listed company posted a $10.5m loss in the last three months of 2018, alongside a $0.07 loss per share, $0.08 short of the consensus $0.01 forecast.
“We believe that the dividend of $0.04 per share is more important than the Q4 miss, as it marks that NAT is finally out of the creditors’ grip (it was restricted to distribute $0.03 under the revolving credit facility),” said Arctic Securities, which advised Nordic on its refinancing.
“Given the refinancing that was announced earlier this month, as well as our bullish outlook for tanker rates, we believe that NAT’s shareholders will enjoy juicier dividend in the coming quarters.”
The loss represented a year-over-year improvement from the $151.3m loss suffered last fourth quarter and from the $37.9m loss this past third quarter.
The company also retired an old debt facility and got a new, $306m credit agreement through CSG Investments and funded by Dallas-based Beal Bank.
The tanker player says the deal lowers borrowing costs while contributing "to a competitive cash break-even rate" and giving the company greater financial flexibility.
Speaking with TradeWinds this week, the Beal's managers called Nordic American Tankers a "great company" and said shipping was a "great fit."
