Diana Shipping Inc. Reports Financial Results for the Fourth Quarter and Year Ended December 31, 2022; Declares Cash Dividend of $0.15 Per Share for the Fourth Quarter 2022 and Special Stock Dividend

ATHENS, Greece, Feb. 22, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Diana Shipping Inc. (NYSE: DSX), (the “Company”), a global shipping company specializing in the ownership and bareboat charter-in of dry bulk vessels, today reported net income of $25.7 million and net income attributed to common stockholders of $24.2 million for the fourth quarter of 2022. This compares to net income of $41.1 million and net income attributed to common stockholders of $39.7 million for the fourth quarter of 2021, including a gain of $15.3 million from the distribution of the common shares of OceanPal Inc. to the Company’s shareholders, following its spinoff. Earnings per share for the fourth quarter of 2022 was $0.28 basic and $0.27 diluted, compared to earnings per share of $0.51 basic and $0.48 diluted in the same quarter in 2021.

Time charter revenues were $75.7 million for the fourth quarter of 2022, compared to $68.8 million for the same quarter of 2021.

Net income in 2022, amounted to $119.1 million and net income attributed to common stockholders amounted to $113.3 million. This compares to net income of $57.4 million and net income attributed to common stockholders of $51.6 million, in 2021. Time charter revenues were $290.0 million in 2022, compared to $214.2 million in 2021. Earnings per share in 2022 was $1.42 basic and $1.36 diluted, compared to earnings per share of $0.64 basic and $0.61 diluted in 2021.

Cash and Special Dividend Declarations

The Company has declared a cash dividend on its common stock of $0.15 per share, based on the Company’s results of operations during the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2022. The cash dividend will be payable on or about March 20, 2023 to all shareholders of record as of March 13, 2023. The Company currently has 104,687,232 common shares issued and outstanding. In addition, the Company is announcing that it intends to declare and pay quarterly cash dividends with respect to the next three quarters of 2023 in an amount of not less than $0.15 per share. The actual declaration of future cash dividends, and the establishment of record and payment dates, is subject to final determination by the Company’s board of directors each quarter after its review of the company's financial performance.

The Company has also declared a special stock dividend to shareholders of record as of April 24, 2023 of an aggregate of 13,157 Series D Convertible Preferred Shares of OceanPal Inc. held by the Company. The special stock dividend is expected to be paid on or around May 16, 2023 (the “Stock Dividend”). Because there is no public market currently existing or expected to develop for the Series D Convertible Preferred Shares of OceanPal Inc., as an accommodation to its common shareholders the Company will automatically convert the Series D Convertible Preferred Shares into OceanPal Inc. common shares on or around the Stock Dividend payment date and distribute such common shares to each common shareholder in lieu of Series D Convertible Preferred Shares of OceanPal Inc. Common shareholders of the Company will have the opportunity to elect to opt out, in whole but not in part, of the conversion of the Series D Convertible Preferred Shares and instead receive Series D Convertible Preferred Shares in connection with the Stock Dividend.

Shareholders receiving OceanPal Inc. common shares will receive the pro-rata number of common shares to which they are entitled following conversion, rounded down to the nearest whole number, and any fractional shares shall be aggregated and sold and the net proceeds thereof will be delivered to common shareholders. All OceanPal Inc. fractional share calculations and the payment of cash in lieu thereof will be determined at the shareholder nominee level. Shareholders electing to receive Series D Convertible Preferred Shares by opting out of the automatic conversion will receive the number of Series D Convertible Preferred Shares equal to such shareholder’s pro-rata portion of all Series D Convertible Preferred Shares, rounded down to the nearest whole number. Any fractional Series D Convertible Preferred Shares that would otherwise be distributed will be converted into OceanPal Inc. common shares at the applicable conversion rate and sold, and the net proceeds therefrom will be delivered to such common shareholder.

OceanPal Inc. will file a registration statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission registering the OceanPal Inc. common shares and/or Series D Convertible Preferred Shares in the Stock Distribution. No distribution of the Series D Convertible Preferred Shares or OceanPal Inc. common shares will be made until such registration statement has been declared effective.

Other Matters

Board of Directors. The Company’s board of directors has determined to increase the size of the board from nine to eleven members, effective February 22, 2023. Mr. Eleftherios Papatrifon will be transitioning from the role of Chief Operating Officer to a member of the board of directors and an executive committee member, and Ms. Jane Chao will fill the second vacancy resulting from the increase in the size of the board of directors. Mr. Papatrifon is a seasoned professional in the shipping industry with significant experience in public company management, asset management, and corporate finance. Ms. Jane Chao is a businessperson with many years of diverse experiences and successes in real estate, hotel and food and beverage industries, she is also a Director of Wah Kwong (China).

The Company is also announcing that it has signed a non-binding term sheet with a major European bank for a new credit facility in an amount of up to $100 million. The new credit facility remains subject to successful negotiation of definitive documentation and satisfaction of other customary closing conditions. If completed, the proceeds of the new credit facility will be used to refinance existing credit facilities secured by nine of the vessels in the Company’s current fleet. The facility is expected to have a term of five years and bear interest at the secured overnight financing rate plus 2.2%, and to include customary financial and other covenants and conditions.

Non-GAAP Measures

(1)      Time charter equivalent rates, or TCE rates, are defined as our time charter revenues less voyage expenses during a period divided by the number of available days during the period, which is consistent with industry standards. Voyage expenses include port charges, bunker (fuel) expenses, canal charges and commissions. TCE is a non-GAAP measure. TCE rate is a standard shipping industry performance measure used primarily to compare daily earnings generated by vessels on time charters with daily earnings generated by vessels on voyage charters, because charter hire rates for vessels on voyage charters are generally not expressed in per day amounts while charter hire rates for vessels on time charters are generally expressed in such amounts.

(2)      Daily vessel operating expenses, which include crew wages and related costs, the cost of insurance, expenses relating to repairs and maintenance, the costs of spares and consumable stores, tonnage taxes and other miscellaneous expenses, are calculated by dividing vessel operating expenses by ownership days for the relevant period.

Conference Call and Webcast Information

The Company’s management will conduct a conference call and simultaneous Internet webcast to review these results at 9:00 A.M. (Eastern Time) on Wednesday, February 22, 2023.

Investors may access the webcast by visiting the Company’s website at www.dianashippinginc.com, and clicking on the webcast link. An accompanying investor presentation also will be available via the webcast link and on the Company’s website. The conference call also may be accessed by telephone by dialing 1-877-407-8291 (for U.S.-based callers) or 1-201-689-8345 (for international callers) and asking the operator for the Diana Shipping Inc. conference call.

A replay of the webcast will be available soon after the completion of the call and will be accessible for 30 days on www.dianashippinginc.com. A telephone replay also will be available for 30 days by dialing 1-877-660-6853 (for U.S.-based callers) or 1-201-612-7415 (for international callers) and providing the Replay ID number 13736130.

About the Company

Diana Shipping Inc. is a global provider of shipping transportation services through its ownership and bareboat charter-in of dry bulk vessels. The Company’s vessels are employed primarily on medium to long-term time charters and transport a range of dry bulk cargoes, including such commodities as iron ore, coal, grain and other materials along worldwide shipping routes.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Matters discussed in this press release may constitute forward-looking statements. The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides safe harbor protections for forward-looking statements in order to encourage companies to provide prospective information about their business. Forward-looking statements include statements concerning plans, objectives, goals, strategies, future events or performance, and underlying assumptions and other statements, which are other than statements of historical facts.

The Company desires to take advantage of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and is including this cautionary statement in connection with this safe harbor legislation. The words “believe,” “anticipate,” “intends,” “estimate,” “forecast,” “project,” “plan,” “potential,” “may,” “should,” “expect,” “pending” and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements.

The forward-looking statements in this press release are based upon various assumptions, many of which are based, in turn, upon further assumptions, including without limitation, Company management’s examination of historical operating trends, data contained in the Company’s records and other data available from third parties. Although the Company believes that these assumptions were reasonable when made, because these assumptions are inherently subject to significant uncertainties and contingencies that are difficult or impossible to predict and are beyond the Company’s control, the Company cannot assure you that it will achieve or accomplish these expectations, beliefs or projections.

In addition to these important factors, other important factors that, in the Company’s view, could cause actual results to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements include the severity, magnitude and duration of the COVID-19 pandemic, including impacts of the pandemic and of businesses’ and governments’ responses to the pandemic on our operations, personnel, and on the demand for seaborne transportation of bulk products; the strength of world economies and currencies, general market conditions, including fluctuations in charter rates and vessel values, changes in demand for dry bulk shipping capacity, changes in the Company’s operating expenses, including bunker prices, drydocking and insurance costs, the market for the Company’s vessels, availability of financing and refinancing, changes in governmental rules and regulations or actions taken by regulatory authorities, potential liability from pending or future litigation, general domestic and international political conditions, including risks associated with the continuing conflict between Russia and Ukraine and related sanctions, potential disruption of shipping routes due to accidents or political events, vessel breakdowns and instances of off-hires and other factors. Please see the Company’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for a more complete discussion of these and other risks and uncertainties. The Company undertakes no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statement, or to make any other forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

(See financial tables attached)