Stealthgas Inc. Reports Second Quarter And Six Months 2012
Financial And Operating Results


ATHENS, GREECE, August 17, 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 second quarter and six months ended June 30, 2012.

Second Quarter 2012 Results:

• Net income for the three months ended June 30, 2012 was $7.2 million, or $0.35 per share, compared to a net loss of $3.6 million, or $(0.17) per share, for the three months ended June 30, 2011. Lower voyage and operating costs, gain on sale of vessel and a lower derivative loss has resulted in the net income being higher despite revenues being lower.

• Voyage revenues for the three months ended June 30, 2012, amounted to $29.1 million, a decrease of $2.3 million, or 7.3%, compared to voyage revenues of $31.4 million for the three months ended June 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 three months ended June 30, 2012 were $2.7 million and $7.5 million, respectively, compared to $5.3 million and $9.9 million for the three months ended June 30, 2011. The $2.6 million, or 49.1%, decrease in voyage expenses was due primarily to the lower number of vessels under spot charters in the 2012 period. The $2.4 million, or 24.2%, 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 second quarter 2012 results are net losses from interest rate derivative instruments of $0.3 million. This amount includes $1.1 million, or $0.05 per share, of interest paid on recurring interest rate swap arrangements. The Company also realized a $0.1 million gain on sale of vessel. Adjusted net income was $6.5 million or $0.31 per share compared to $3.4 million or $0.16 per share for the same period last year.

• EBITDA for the three months ended June 30, 2012 amounted to $16.5 million. Reconciliations of Adjusted Net Income and EBITDA to Net Income are set forth below.

An average of 36.5 vessels were owned by the Company in the three months ended June 30, 2012, earning an average time-charter equivalent rate of approximately $8,041 per day as compared to 38.7 vessels, earning an average time-charter equivalent rate of $7,457 per day for the same period of 2011.

Six Months 2012 Results:

• Net income for the six months ended June 30, 2012 was $14.6 million, or $0.71 per share, compared to a net loss of $2.1 million, or $(0.10) per share, for the six months ended June 30, 2011. Lower voyage and operating costs, gain on sale of vessel and a lower derivative loss has resulted in the net income being higher despite revenues being lower.

• Voyage revenues for the six months ended June 30, 2012, amounted to $58.3 million, a decrease of $3.6 million, or 5.8%, compared to voyage revenues of $61.9 million for the six months ended June 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 six months ended June 30, 2012 were $5.3 million and $15.2 million, respectively, compared to $8.9 million and $20.4 million for the six months ended June 30, 2011. The $3.6 million, or 40.4%, decrease in voyage expenses was due primarily to the lower number of vessels under spot charters in the 2012 period. The $5.2 million, or 25.5%, 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 six months 2012 results are net losses from interest rate derivative instruments of $0.8 million. This amount includes $2.4 million, or $0.12 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 $11.7 million or $0.57 per share compared to $6.1 million or $0.29 per share for the same period last year.

• EBITDA for the six months ended June 30, 2012 amounted to $33.4 million. Reconciliations of Adjusted Net Income and EBITDA to Net Income are set forth below.

An average of 36.7 vessels were owned by the Company in the six months ended June 30, 2012, earning an average time-charter equivalent rate of approximately $8,083 per day as compared to 38.5 vessels, earning an average time-charter equivalent rate of $7,726 per day for the same period of 2011.

Second quarter events:
As previously announced, the Gas Kalogeros was delivered to her new owners on May 4th, 2012. The vessel was sold at a small profit. The Company took delivery from the yard of the 7,500 cbm LPG carrier, Gas Esco, as expected in June 2012. With the delivery of the Gas Esco the Company’s newbuilding program has been completed and there are no remaining capital expenditure requirements.

The time charter for the 5,018 cbm, built 2011, LPG carrier, Gas Cerberus has been extended for one year until July 2013.

CEO Harry Vafias commented
We have seen considerable improvement in our bottom line as compared to the same period last year, as a result of the strengthening of the LPG market and our chartering strategy. Even though we may expect some typical seasonal weakness during the summer months we are confident that the fundamentals in our core segment point to further market improvements in the future. With an improved cash position we are still evaluating strategic opportunities to grow and renew our fleet and increase our market share.

About STEALTHGAS INC.
Headquartered in Athens, Greece, STEALTHGAS INC. is a ship-owning company primarily serving the LPG sector of the international shipping industry. As of the date of this press release, STEALTHGAS INC. has a fleet of 33 LPG carriers with a total capacity of 161,822 cbm, three medium range (M.R.) product tankers and one Aframax oil tanker with a total capacity of 255,804 deadweight tons (dwt). 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