StealthGas reports Q2 revenue, profit and liquidity gains

On Wednesday, StealthGas (NASDAQ: GASS ) discussed second-quarter financial results during its earnings call.

The full transcript is provided below.

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Access the full call at Summary StealthGas reported second quarter 2026 revenues of $42.8 million, with profits of $17.3 million, highlighting strong financial performance despite a decrease in fleet size.

The company has achieved zero leverage by prepaying over $350 million in debt and has a cash position exceeding $250 million, enabling strategic flexibility.

Strategic initiatives include reducing exposure to the spot market, with 45% of fleet days covered by time charters and secured future revenues of $90 million.

13 vessel sales since 2023, raising approximately $170 million, have decreased the fleet size to 25 vessels, with a focus on selling older tonnage.

Geopolitical tensions, especially the conflict involving the Strait of Hormuz, have impacted LPG supply, but U.S. exports have increased, benefiting shipping rates.

Operational highlights include maintaining high profit margins and efficient cost management, with operating expenses at $5,310 per vessel per day.

Future outlook remains positive with plans to renew the fleet and capitalize on liquidity, despite geopolitical uncertainties affecting market dynamics.

Full Transcript OPERATOR Good day and thank you for standing by.

Welcome to the StealthGas second quarter 2026 results conference call and webcast.

At this time all participants are in listen-only mode.

Please be advised that today's conference is being recorded.

I would now like to hand the conference over to our speaker today, Harry Vafias.

Please go ahead.

Harry Vafias, CEO Good morning everyone and welcome to our second quarter 2026 earnings and conference call.

This is Harry Vafias, the CEO, and joining me today is, as usual, our Chairman, Mr.

Jolly, and Costagnos Tavares from Investor Relations.

Before we commence our presentation, I'd like to remind you that we'll be discussing forward-looking statements, which reflect current views with respect to future events and financial performance and are subject to material risks and uncertainties.

So if you could all take a moment to read our disclaimer on slide 2.

The risks are further disclosed in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Let's proceed on slide 3 for an overview of the quarter and our strategy implementation.

While the market for the second quarter was relatively stable for the smaller ships and strengthening for the larger ones, our company managed to achieve revenues of $42.8 million, similar to the previous quarter but somewhat reduced from the record of $47 million achieved last year.

The company continued to generate superior returns with profits of $17.3 million for the quarter, improving on the $15.9 million achieved in the previous quarter.

Thus far in 2026, the performance has been very strong, reporting earnings per share of $0.46 for second quarter and $0.89 for the first half, underlying the fact that the company stock is very attractive on a price-to-earnings multiple.

Our focus has been on delivering on our strategic principles.

In terms of our commercial strategy, that means keeping visible revenue stream and reducing our exposure to the volatile spot market.

Currently 45% of the fleet calendar days are covered by time charters and total secured future revenues are $90 million.

The company has also made prudent use of its capital by mostly paying down its debt—over $350 million of debt prepaid over the last few years—and being one of the few public shipping companies having achieved zero leverage, while at the same time allocating funds for a share repurchase program and having spent about $21 million in buybacks since 2023, but as the share price has appreciated, we did not buy back any shares during the second quarter.

It's also part of our strategy to sell older tonnage while the market is high in order to crystallize returns and improve the averages of the fleet.

With 13 vessel sales, excluding JV vessels, since the start of 2023 that have amounted to approximately $170 million, we have reduced the overall fleet from approximately 40 vessels at the start of 2023 down to 25 vessels, with the latest exits, the Eco Wizard wreck and, just this week, the delivery of the Eco Royalty.

We will continue to sell older and smaller tonnage, although the market for LPG vessels is not very liquid in that respect.

This has also allowed us to raise cash and improve the liquidity of the company.

As of June 30, the cash position was $168 million.