Topic: How To Invest

Good Afternoon: I would like your opinion of Eagle Bulk Shipping. Thanks.

Article Excerpt

Eagle Bulk Shipping Inc., $4.93, symbol EGLE on Nasdaq (Shares outstanding: 62.1 million; Market cap: $305.9 million), is a New York City-based shipping company that specializes in dry bulk cargoes, such as iron ore, coal, grain, cement and fertilizers. Eagle Bulk owns and operates 26 carriers. It has 21 more ships on order. The company first sold shares to the public at $14 each, and began trading on the Nasdaq exchange in June 2005. Eagle Bulk prefers to charter its vessels under one- to three-year contracts. That gives it more predicable cash flows than bidding for cargoes on the spot market. However, the weak economy has pushed down shipping by 50% since mid-2008. This means that Eagle Bulk is replacing its expiring contracts with new ones at much lower rates. In the three months ended September 30, 2009, the company’s earnings fell 97.8%, to $512,261, or $0.01 a share. A year earlier, it earned $23.2 million, or $0.49 a share. The latest earnings…