ISC Profit Slip in Q2 2014 but Pay Dividend

International Shipholding Corporation (ISC) has announced financial results for the quarter ended June 30, 2014, summarized here:

Net Loss
he Company reported a net loss of $664,000 for the three months ended June 30, 2014. For the comparable three months ended June 30, 2013, the Company reported net income of $1.9 million, which included a non-cash operating gain of $1.8 million.

Second Quarter 2014 Highlights

• Invested 30% equity in a Joint Venture owning two new built chemical tankers
• Invested 30% equity in a Joint Venture owning two asphalt tankers
• Reached agreement to an extension of the Jones Act Belt Self-Unloading Coal Carrier contract
• Concluded a long-term extension with an Indonesian mining company for transporting fuel and supplies
• Extended the Capesize vessel time charter contract through 1st Qtr 2016
• Declared a second quarter dividend of $0.25 per share of common stock payable on September 4, 2014 to shareholders of record as of August 15, 2014
• Paid a $2.375 per share and $2.25 per share dividend on its Series A and Series B Preferred Stock, respectively, on July 30, 2014

Mr. Niels M. Johnsen, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, stated, “During the second quarter, our financial and strategic flexibility enabled us to make equity investments in joint ventures owning two new built chemical tankers and two asphalt tankers.

Also during the quarter, we were able to secure a multi-year contract for our belt self-unloading coal carrier on the Atlantic coast through the 1st quarter of 2017, supplementing our longer-term deployment in the Gulf of Mexico, and to extend our capesize vessel’s contract for an additional 12-16 months, offering us further insulation from volatility in the dry bulk spot market.

By making accretive acquisitions across niche maritime markets, optimizing asset allocation across geographies and supplementing our core, medium to long-term contracts with short-term charters, we believe that we have put the Company in a strong competitive position and meaningfully enhanced long-term value for our shareholders.

“Moving forward, we will continue to evaluate accretive acquisition opportunities while maintaining a focus on partnering with high-quality counterparties on primarily medium to long-term contracts that generate stable, predictable cash flows for the benefit of our shareholders. We remain committed to returning value to our shareholders. In line with this, our Board of Directors has declared a $0.25 per share dividend for the second quarter of 2014 and maintained our $1.00 per share target for the full year 2014.”