Stelmar Shipping Reports 2Q Results

Stelmar Shipping Ltd. announced operating results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2003. Stelmar reported its 34th consecutive quarter of profitability since inception and 10th quarter since going public in March of 2001. For the second quarter of 2003, including a non-operating loss from the sale of a vessel, the Company reported net income of $4,489,000, or $0.26 per diluted share. Excluding the non-operating loss, the Company earned net income of $11,744,000, or $0.68 per fully diluted share. This compares with net income of $11,453,000, or $0.73 per fully diluted share, for the second quarter of 2002. The weighted average number of diluted shares used in the computations was 17,366,833 and 15,591,267 for the second quarters of 2003 and 2002, respectively. Operating income increased to $16,324,000 from $16,043,000 in the second quarter of 2002. EBITDA for the quarter was $27,291,000 compared with $24,817,000 for last year's second quarter. Net Revenues from vessels for the quarter were $40,685,0000, an increase of 13.4% over the $35,880,000 recorded in the second quarter of last year, mainly due to the expansion of the fleet and strong rates achieved in the spot market. Time charter earned revenues for the second quarter of 2003 were $36,487,000, approximately 89.7% of net revenues from vessels, as opposed to $33,890,000, or 94.5% for the same quarter last year. For the six months ended June 30, 2003, including a non-operating loss from the sale of a vessel, Stelmar reported net income of $15,914,000, or $0.93 per fully diluted share. Excluding the non-operating loss, the Company earned net income of $23,169,000, or $1.35 per fully diluted share. This compares to $19,415,000, or $1.41 per fully diluted share for the first half of 2002. The weighted average number of diluted shares used in the computations was 17,178,434 and 13,761,378 for the periods ended June 30, 2003 and 2002, respectively. Operating income increased 14.7% to $32,498,000 from $28,338,000 for the first half of 2002. EBITDA for the first six months of 2003 was $54,208,000 compared to $44,400,000 for the same period last year. Net revenues from vessels were $81,503,000, an increase of 25% over the $65,221,000 for the first half of 2002, mainly due to expansion of the fleet and strong rates achieved in the spot market. Time charter earned revenues for the first six months of 2003 were $72,458,000, approximately 88.9% of net revenues from vessels, versus $60,534,000 or approximately 92.8% of revenues for the first half of 2002. Peter Goodfellow, President and Chief Executive Officer of Stelmar Shipping, commented, "We are extremely pleased with our achievement of posting strong results for the first half of 2003 and the progress we have made in positioning the company for future success. During the second quarter, Stelmar continued to successfully execute its time charter strategy and has enhanced its earning and shareholder return potential for both 2003 and 2004. Consistent with our strategy, we once again took advantage of the strong rate environment and locked-in time charters at higher rates."