Stealthgas Inc. Reports Third Quarter And Nine Months 2012
Financial And Operating Results


ATHENS, GREECE, November 26, 2012

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 nine months ended September 30, 2012.

Third Quarter 2012 Results:

• Net income for the three months ended September 30, 2012 was $6.6 million, or $0.32 per share, compared to net income of $6.2 million, or $0.30 per share, for the three months ended September 30, 2011. Lower voyage and operating costs and higher revenues resulted in net income for the three months ended September 30, 2012 being higher than the net income for the three months ended September 30, 2011. The $0.4 million increase in net income was achieved despite a $0.4 million loss on derivatives and foreign exchange for the three months ended September 30, 2012, compared to a $2.9 million gain on derivatives and foreign exchange in the same quarter last year.

• Voyage revenues for the three months ended September 30, 2012, amounted to $30.4 million, an increase of $2.9 million, or 10.5%, compared to voyage revenues of $27.5 million for the three months ended September 30, 2011, as a result of improving freight markets.

• Voyage expenses and vessels’ operating expenses for the three months ended September 30, 2012 were $3.5 million and $7.7 million, respectively, compared to $4.2 million and $8.4 million for the three months ended September 30, 2011. The $0.7 million, or 16.7%, decrease in voyage expenses was primarily due to the lower number of vessels under spot charters in the 2012 period. The $0.7 million, or 8.3%, decrease in vessels’ operating expenses was primarily due to the higher number of vessels operating under bareboat charters in the 2012 period.

• Included in the third quarter 2012 results are net losses from interest rate derivative instruments of $0.4 million. This amount includes $1.2 million, or $0.06 per share, of interest paid on recurring interest rate swap arrangements. Adjusted net income was $5.8 million or $0.28 per share for the three months ended September 30, 2012 compared to $2.1 million or $0.10 per share for the same period last year.

• EBITDA for the three months ended September 30, 2012 amounted to $16.4 million. Reconciliations of Adjusted Net Income and EBITDA to Net Income are set forth below.

An average of 37.0 vessels were owned by the Company in the three months ended September 30, 2012, compared to 36.3 vessels for the same period of 2011. As of today, charter coverage for the fleet is 68% through the end of 2013 and 38% through the end of 2014.

Nine Months 2012 Results:

• Net income for the nine months ended September 30, 2012 was $21.2 million, or $1.03 per share, compared to a net income of $4.1 million, or $0.20 per share, for the nine months ended September 30, 2011.

• Voyage revenues for the nine months ended September 30, 2012, amounted to $88.6 million, a decrease of $0.8 million, or 0.9%, compared to voyage revenues of $89.4 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2011. The decrease in revenues was firstly due to the lower number of vessels in the fleet and secondly due to more of the vessels operating under bareboat charters in the 2012 period.

• Voyage expenses and vessels’ operating expenses for the nine months ended September 30, 2012 were $8.8 million and $22.9 million, respectively, compared to $13.1 million and $28.8 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2011. The $4.3 million, or 32.8%, decrease in voyage expenses was due primarily to the lower number of vessels under spot charters in the 2012 period. The $5.9 million, or 20.5%, decrease in vessels’ operating expenses was due primarily to the higher number of vessels operating under bareboat charters in the 2012 period.

• Included in the first nine months 2012 results are net losses from interest rate derivative instruments of $1.2 million. This amount includes $3.6 million, or $0.18 per share, of interest paid on recurring interest rate swap arrangements. The Company also realized a $1.4 million gain on sale of vessels. Adjusted net income was $17.5 million or $0.85 per share for the nine months ended September 30, 2012 compared to $8.2 million or $0.39 per share for the same period last year.

• EBITDA for the nine months ended September 30, 2012 amounted to $49.7 million. Reconciliations of Adjusted Net Income and EBITDA to Net Income are set forth below.

An average of 36.8 vessels were owned by the Company in the nine months ended September 30, 2012, compared to 37.8 vessels for the same period of 2011.

Third quarter events:
As previously announced, the Company plans to expand its fleet with the addition of four LPG carriers being built in South Korea, which are scheduled to be delivered between January 2014 and June 2014. The Company has already arranged for bank financing related to the acquisition of these vessels at the time of their delivery. In addition to the deposits already paid and the bank financing, the Company estimates that $10-15 million will need to be invested on delivery in 2014 to conclude the acquisitions. As of September 30, 2012, the Company had $41.2 million in cash and cash equivalents.

CEO Harry Vafias commented
There were no major surprises in our results for the third quarter of 2012. We expected a considerable improvement over last year and we delivered. Our adjusted net income for the quarter increased by 180% and although in the summer there is typically a seasonal weakness we are very satisfied with the levels of activity in the chartering markets. As we enter into the winter months we expect activity to pick up. Regardless, we are confident that the fundamentals in our core segment point to further market improvements in the future, that is why we concluded the acquisition of the four eco-type newbuilding LPG carriers. It has been our strategy over the past year to expand and renew our fleet, and the addition of these vessels to our fleet will improve our operational efficiencies, our profitability and our market leadership. We continue to evaluate opportunities for further fleet growth.

About STEALTHGAS INC.
Headquartered in Athens, Greece, STEALTHGAS INC. is a ship-owning company primarily serving the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) sector of the international shipping industry. STEALTHGAS INC. currently has a fleet of 33 LPG carriers with a total capacity of 161,822 cubic meters (cbm), three M.R. product tankers and one Aframax oil tanker with a total capacity of 255,804 deadweight tons (dwt). The Company has purchased four newbuilding LPG carriers with expected delivery in 2014. Once the delivery of these acquisitions is completed, STEALTHGAS INC’s fleet will be composed of 37 LPG carriers with a total capacity of 184,822 cubic meters (cbm). STEALTHGAS INC’s shares are listed on the NASDAQ Global Select Market and trade under the symbol “GASS”.

Full report at: www.stealthgas.com

StealthGas Inc. Press Release