Dorian LPG is ready to reshape its fleet after a share sale two months ago that raised about $100m.
The a US-listed owner and operator of 25 large LPG carriers “completed a successful equity offering that positions us well for future fleet growth and renewal,” chief executive John Hadjipateras said on Thursday.
Dorian LPG sold more than 2m shares in June to raise cash for “general corporate purposes”.
The company currently owns 21 ships and charters-in another four.
Dorian’s vessels are all operating in the company’s Helios pool, except the 84,000-cbm Corsair (built 2014), which has been on a time charter to an oil major since November 2019.
The Stamford-based company has already began moves to renew its fleet.
At the end of last year it jumped on the bandwagon for very large ammonia carriers with an order for one firm and one optional newbuilding at South Korean shipbuilder Hanwha Ocean.
Any other fleet moves will come when profits and dividend payments are high.
Dorian’s last fiscal year ending 31 March was its most successful since it listed in New York 10 years ago.
It posted record annual net income of $307m, up 78% from the previous year.
Profit remained at robust levels in the three months through to June — a period Dorian calls its “fiscal first quarter 2025”.
Net income for the period was broadly flat year on year at $51.3m.
The figure dropped from the previous two quarters, when it had climbed to record levels of $100m and $79.2m, respectively.
This is in line with seasonal trends, which saw Dorian’s time charter equivalent earnings in the three months through to the of June at $55,228 per day, from $51,156 per day in the same period last year.
“Demand for LPG remains strong,” Hadjipateras said.
The results were in line with the guidance provided by the company last month, when Dorian also announced boosting its dividend payment to $42.6m from $40.6m in the previous quarter.
Dorian has a market capitalisation of $1.74bn, compared with an estimated net fleet value of $1.19bn at the end of June.
This makes it one of very few shipping companies to trade above its net asset value.
Dorian’s shares had soared to a record level of about $50 in May, but have slid back since to $40.86 in the wake of its recent stock sale.
