Overseas Shipping Group News

Heidmar reported the unexpected passing of Marc La Monte of Wilton, Connecticut. Mr. La Monte passed away while on a business flight in Europe on the morning of October 14th. La Monte was a widely respected member of the international shipping industry for 27 years. He served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Heidmar Inc. from April 2012. Prior to becoming CEO, La Montehad been the Managing Director of Heidmar’s VLCC tanker pool, Seawolf Tankers. La Monte spent 16 years at Overseas Shipping Group in various positions, including vice president of OSG’s LNG tanker business.

Aker Philadelphia Shipyard (Oslo: AKPS), a leading U.S. commercial shipyard, delivered to American Shipping Company (Oslo: AMSC) the shipyard’s twelfth Veteran Class MT-46 product tanker. The 46,000 dwt vessel, named the Overseas Tampa, will leave the shipyard in the coming days under the operation of Overseas Shipping Group (OSG) to transport petroleum products. The on schedule delivery of this ship marks the successful conclusion of a historic shipbuilding program that began in April 2005.

It looks as though the notoriously cyclical shipping sector is heading back up the mountain, as last week one of the world's prestigious financial firms stamped four companies with an investment ratings uprade. ING Barings last Wednesday raised its ratings on four shipping companies to strong buy from buy. Analyst Stephen Gengaro raised his ratings on shares of Frontline Ltd., OMI Corp., Overseas Shipping Group and Teekay Shipping. Frontline was raised to a strong buy from buy and Gengaro's 2000 and 2001 estimates to $1.60 from 40 cents and to $2.35 from $1.00 to reflect the company's "tremendous" leverage to rising time-charter equivalent (TCE) rates for its very large crude carriers (VLCC) tankers.

ING Barings raised its ratings on four shipping companies to strong buy from buy. Analyst Stephen Gengaro raised his ratings on shares of Frontline Ltd. to a strong buy from buy to reflect the company's "tremendous" leverage to rising time-charter equivalent (TCE) rates for its very large crude carriers (VLCC) tankers. The rating on shares of international tanker owner OMI Corp. was raised to strong buy from buy, with revised estimates reflecting upward revisions to his rate assumptions for company's crude tanker and product tanker fleets. The rating on shares of Overseas Shipping Group was raised to strong buy from buy with a $30 price target based on 7.5 times the midpoint of his peak earnings estimate and peak pretax earnings per share estimate.