Star Bulk Announces Public Offering
of 16,500,000 Common Shares
ATHENS, GREECE, July 18, 2011-Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (the "Company" or "Star Bulk") (Nasdaq: SBLK) today announced that it intends to offer and sell 16,500,000 common shares in an underwritten public offering. All of the shares in the offering are to be sold by Star Bulk. As part of the offering, the Company has granted the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase an additional 2,475,000 common shares to cover over-allotments, if any. The Company expects to use the net offering proceeds to fund a portion of the aggregate purchase price for two secondhand drybulk carriers it has contracted to acquire by August 31, 2011 and for general corporate purposes.
Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. and RBC Capital Markets, LLC are acting as joint book-running managers for this offering and ABN AMRO Bank N.V., Cantor Fitzgerald & Co., Dahlman Rose & Company, LLC and FBR Capital Markets & Co. are acting as co-managers for this offering.
This offering is being made only by means of a prospectus supplement and accompanying base prospectus. A prospectus supplement related to the offering will be filed with the SEC and will be available on the SEC's website located at www.sec.gov. When available, copies of the prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus relating to this offering may be obtained from Deutsche Bank Securities, Attention: Prospectus Department, 100 Plaza One, Jersey City, NJ 07311 (telephone: 1-800-503-4611) and RBC Capital Markets, Attn: Equity Syndicate, Three World Financial Center , 200 Vesey Street, 8th Floor , New York, New York 10281 (telephone: 1-877-822-4089).
A shelf registration statement relating to the shares was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") and is effective. This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy these securities, nor shall there be any sale of these securities, in any state or other jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or other jurisdiction.
About Star Bulk
Star Bulk is a global shipping company providing worldwide seaborne transportation solutions in the dry bulk sector. Star Bulk's vessels transport major bulks, which include iron ore, coal and grain and minor bulks such as bauxite, fertilizers and steel products. Star Bulk was incorporated in the Marshall Islands on December 13, 2006 and maintains executive offices in Athens, Greece. Its common stock trades on the Nasdaq Global Market under the symbol "SBLK". Currently, Star Bulk has an operating fleet of eleven dry bulk carriers, definitive agreements to build two Capesize vessels and definitive agreements to acquire two Capesize vessels. The total fleet consists of fifteen vessels, seven Capesize, and eight Supramax dry bulk vessels with a combined cargo carrying capacity of 1,626,721 deadweight tons. The average age of our current operating fleet is approximately 11 years.
Star Bulk Carriers Corp. press release