Seaport Global Securities has dropped research on 21 shipping stocks under its coverage as a result of what it called “analyst departure.”
The announcement in a client note would appear to signal the departure of veteran analyst Magnus Fyhr, who came to Seaport in 2016 and has covered shipping stocks for 20 years.
What was not clear from the brief announcement was whether Seaport Global has thrown in the towel on shipping altogether.
Attempts to reach Fyhr, co-chief executive Danny Conwill and a press spokesman were not immediately successful. The firm is based in New Orleans and New York, but its shipping coverage has been headquartered in Houston.
However, a turn away from shipping would mark a dramatic turnaround from Seaport Global’s direction only three years ago, when Conwill told TradeWinds he'd assembled a powerful team of ex-colleagues from investment bank Jefferies to lead a capital-markets march on the sector.
“The point is that we feel like we’ve fully built out the [shipping] team here now,” Conwill told TradeWinds in June 2016.
“Most of these guys have been in the industry for more than 20 years — and I just hit 30. We’re built for the long haul. We’re here for the industry in good times and bad.
“These markets will come back open again for shipping in both debt and equity, and we’ll be excited to play a big role.”
Fyhr was one of the former Jefferies colleagues, having been among shipping's most influential analysts during his stint there from 1998 to 2006.
Another former Jefferies colleague, investment banker David Frischkorn, moved on from his role as SGS’s shipping specialist in January 2018 after six years with the firm, citing a wish to devote more time to family and personal pursuits in the Houston area.
Other recent departures — and Jefferies alumni — are understood to include Tim Monfort, who had led SGS’s equity capital markets team, and Dean O’Connor, who is considered one of the top salesmen of shipping equities.
If Seaport Global is ditching shipping, it would be yet another indication of the sector’s struggles in the US capital markets, where there has not been a successful initial public offering since June 2015 as most stocks trade at significant discounts to net asset values.
In a recent interview, Evercore investment banker Mark Friedman told TradeWinds he considered himself fortunate to be handling mergers and acquisitions and other advisory work given the overall poor climate for capital-markets products.
Another banker summed it up this way:
“There just are not enough deals out there to keep bankers and analysts employed doing nothing but shipping, and when there are deals, the competition for them is increasingly intense, with lenders also now seeking a share of investment-banking fees.”
Fyhr’s coverage was among the broadest in the sector.
The companies dropped include Ardmore Shipping, DHT Holdings, Diana Shipping, Eagle Bulk, Euronav, Flex LNG, Frontline Ltd, GasLog Ltd, Genco Shipping & Trading, Golar LNG, Golden Ocean Group, Hafnia Tankers, International Seaways, Nordic American Tankers, Safe Bulkers, Scorpio Bulkers, Scorpio Tankers, Ship Finance International, Star Bulk Carriers, Teekay Tankers and Tsakos Energy Navigation.
