NAVIGATOR HOLDINGS LTD. PRELIMINARY FOURTH QUARTER AND FINANCIAL YEAR 2018 RESULTS
Highlights
*Navigator Holdings Ltd. (the “Company”) (NYSE: NVGS) reported operating revenue of $78.2 million for the three months ended December 31, 2018, an increase from $76.7 million for the three months ended December 31, 2017. Operating revenue for the year ended December 31, 2018, amounted to $310.0 million.
*A net loss of $3.9 million (or a loss per share of $0.07) for the three months ended December 31, 2018. This includes non-cash movements of our cross-currency interest rate swap and foreign exchange translation, both relating to our NOK denominated bond, without which the loss for the three months ended December 31, 2018 would have been $1.1 million (or a loss per share of $0.02). A net loss of $5.7 million (or a loss per share of $0.10) for the year ended December 31, 2018, which includes a loss of $2.8 million for non-cash movements of our cross-currency interest rate swap and foreign exchange translation.
*Adjusted EBITDA(1) was $117.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2018, compared to $120.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2017.
*Maintained a fleet utilization of 86.3% for the three months ended December 31, 2018, resulting in a strong utilization of 89.0% for the year ended December 31, 2018.
*In November 2018, the Company successfully issued senior secured bonds in an aggregate principal amount of NOK 600 million (approximately $71.7 million) with Nordic Trustee AS. as the bond trustee. The net proceeds will be used to partially finance the Company’s portion of the capital cost of construction of the ethylene export marine terminal at Morgan’s Point, Texas (the “Marine Export Terminal”) related to the Company’s 50/50 joint venture (the “Marine Terminal Joint Venture”).
*Since the end of the year, in March 2019, the Company successfully re-financed four of its ethylene capable vessels from the 2015 Secured Term Loan Facility for an aggregate amount of $107.0 million. The repayment of the loan on the four vessels was $75.6 million, leaving net proceeds of $31.4 million for fees and for general corporate purposes.
*In March 2019, the Company also successfully executed a credit agreement (the “Terminal Facility”) for a maximum principle amount of $75.0 million to be solely used for the payment of construction costs relating to the Marine Export Terminal.
*Upon completion of the above financings, the company has fully financed its portion of the capital cost of construction of the Marine Export Terminal.
Fourth Quarter 2018 Financial Results Overview
Operating revenue for the three months ended December 31, 2018, was $78.2 million, an increase of $1.5 million, or 2.0%, compared to the $76.7 million of operating revenue for the three months ended December 31, 2017.
For the fourth quarter of 2018, the average time charter equivalent rate (“TCE”)(2) across the fleet was $636,333 per calendar month ($20,920 per day), compared to $626,161 per calendar month ($20,586 per day) for the comparable period in 2017.
Fleet utilization across the 38 vessels was 86.3% for the fourth quarter of 2018, a reduction from 87.2% in the fourth quarter of 2017.
Operating revenue less voyage expenses amounted to $62.8 million for the three months ended December 31, 2018, compared to $61.9 million in the same three month period of 2017. This increase during the three months ended December 31, 2018, compared to the three months ended December 31, 2017, was as a result of a combination of increases in TCE rates giving rise to additional revenue of $1.0 million, a further $0.5 million increase due to the additional vessels in our fleet, partially off-set by a reduction in utilization rates of $0.6 million.
Net loss was $3.9 million for the three months ended December 31, 2018, or a loss per share of $0.07 per share. This includes non-cash movements of our cross-currency interest rate swap and foreign exchange translation, both relating to our NOK denominated bond, without which the loss for the three months ended December 31, 2018 would have been $1.1 million.