Diana Shipping Sinks on Humdrum Report

ATHENS (TheStreet) -- Diana Shipping(DSX Quote) reported second-quarter earnings that met Wall Street expectations, though results on both the top and bottom lines dropped off compared with a year ago and with the first quarter of the year.

The Greek shipper reported net income of a little over $30 million, or 39 cents a share -- even with analysts' estimates -- down from the $57 million, or 46 cents a share, it earned a year ago, before the recession took hold.

Most of Diana's ships are locked into long-term charter contracts, and thus the company did not participate as much as other shippers in the second-period's spike in rates.

Revenue fell 31% to $59.8 million from $86.8 million a year ago.

Diana's second-quarter numbers also fell short, albeit by a narrow margin, of what it posted for the first quarter, one of the most difficult in the history of the dry bulk industry.

Second-quarter time-charter equivalent rates for Diana fell to $33,073 a day from $47,844 a year ago.

Known as a conservative shop relative to its peers -- both in its use of leverage as well as its exposure to the spot market -- Diana said its cash reserves grew to $218 million in the second quarter, ammunition it will use "to seize upon upon the opportunities that will be available to strong competitors in the dry bulk sector," including possible fleet expansion.