STEALTHGAS INC. Reports Third Quarter And First Nine Months 2010 Financial And Operating Results

ATHENS, Greece, Nov. 16, 2010 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- STEALTHGAS INC. (Nasdaq:GASS), a ship-owning company primarily serving the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) sector of the international shipping industry, announced today its unaudited financial and operating results for the third quarter and first nine months ended September 30, 2010.

Third Quarter 2010 Results:

For the three months ended September 30, 2010, voyage revenues amounted to $26.7 million, a decrease of $1.7 million, or 6.0%, compared to voyage revenues of $28.4 million for the three months ended September 30, 2009. Net income for the three months ended September 30, 2010 was $1.0 million, or $0.05 per share, a decrease of $6.2 million, from net income of $7.2 million, or $0.32 per share, for the three months ended September 30, 2009. Net income for the three months ended September 30, 2010 included a $0.2 million fee for the termination of a charter, compared to a charter termination fee of $0.6 million for the three months ended September 30, 2009.

For the three months ended September 30, 2010, the Company had a $1.6 million realized cash loss on interest rate swap arrangements, a $1.0 million unrealized non-cash loss on interest rate swap and foreign currency hedging arrangements, and a $1.1 million non-cash gain due to exchange rate movements on foreign currency deposits. This compares to a realized cash loss of $1.8 million on interest rate swap arrangements and an unrealized non-cash gain on interest rate swap and foreign currency hedging arrangements of $4.5 million for the three months ended September 30, 2009.

Voyage expenses and vessel operating expenses for the three months ended September 30, 2010 were $2.8 million and $10.2 million, respectively, compared to $2.7 million and $9.6 million, respectively, for the three months ended September 30, 2009. The increase in voyage expenses was due primarily to the increased level of spot market activity with 881 spot voyage days in the third quarter of 2010 compared to 763 spot voyage days in the same period last year. Under spot voyage charters the Company is responsible for all voyage expenses including fuel, port and canal fees.