Navios Maritime Partners (NYSE:NMM) reported second-quarter financial results on Thursday. The transcript from the company's second-quarter earnings call has been provided below.

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Summary

Navios Maritime Partners reported strong financial results for Q2 2026 with net income of $167.9 million, EBITDA of $275.2 million, and earnings per common unit of $5.78. Revenue increased by 25% year-over-year to $410 million.

The company continues to modernize its fleet, selling older vessels and acquiring new ones, including seven newbuilding VLCCs and three new Capesize vessels, aiming to enhance cash flow visibility and benefit from favorable market conditions.

Navios announced a new $200 million common unit repurchase program, doubling its previous authorization, as part of a strategy to create shareholder value and maintain financial flexibility.

The company's diversified fleet across tanker, dry bulk, and container segments secured a total contracted revenue backlog of $4.4 billion extending through 2037, providing strong earnings visibility.

Management highlighted the impact of geopolitical tensions on global trade patterns, emphasizing the strategic advantage of having a young, modern fleet and the importance of maintaining a disciplined risk management approach.

Full Transcript

OPERATOR

Hello and welcome everyone joining today's Navios Maritime Partners Q2 2026 earnings call. At this time all participants are in a listen-only mode. Later you will have the opportunity to ask questions during the question-and-answer session. To register to ask a question at any time, please press star-1 on your telephone keypad. Please note this call is being recorded and we are standing by if you should need any assistance. With us today from the company are Chairwoman and CEO Ms. Angeliki Frangou, Chief Operating Officer Mr. Stratos de Cypris, Chief Financial Officer Ms. Eri Tironi, and Chief Trading Officer Mr. Vincent von de Wahle. As a reminder, this conference call is being webcast. To access the webcast, please go to the Investor section of Navios Maritime Partners’ website, www.navios-mlp. You will see the webcasting link in the middle of the page, and a copy of the presentation referenced in today's earnings conference call will also be found there.

Now I will review the Safe Harbor Statement. This conference call could contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 about Navios Maritime Partners. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts. Such forward-looking statements are based upon the current beliefs and expectations of Navios Maritime Partners’ management and are subject to risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements.

Such risks are more fully discussed in Navios Maritime Partners’ filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The information set forth herein should be understood in light of such risks. Navios Maritime Partners does not assume any obligation to update the information contained in this conference call. The agenda for today's call is as follows: First, Ms. Frangou will offer opening remarks. Next, Mr. de Cypris will give an overview of Navios Maritime Partners’ segment data.

Next, Ms. Tironi will give an overview of Navios Maritime Partners’ financial results. Then Mr. von de Wahle will provide an industry overview, and lastly we'll open the call to take questions. Now I turn the call over to Navios Maritime Partners’ Chairwoman and CEO, Ms. Angeliki Frangou.

Angeliki Frangou, Chairwoman and CEO

Good morning and thank you all for joining us on today's call. I am pleased with our results for the second quarter and first six months of 2026. We reported net income of $167.9 million and $274.3 million, EBITDA of $275.2 million and $487.8 million, earnings per common unit of $5.78 and $9.42. We also announced a $0.06 distribution per unit for the quarter. We continue to operate in a world marked with uncertainty and conflict. The war between Russia and Ukraine remains unresolved.

The persistent attacks in the Strait of Hormuz and more recent ones in the Red Sea have caused persistent disruptions to global trade flows. Against this backdrop, trade has been surprisingly resilient and energy prices, while volatile, remain relatively muted. These conflicts are causing lasting implications for global trade patterns. Countries and companies are reassessing their exposure for critical resources to the maritime choke point. They are placing greater value on supply chain resilience, looking to diversify through alternative suppliers, routes, storage capacity, transportation infrastructure.

This trend may have a net effect of creating longer long-haul routes. As you can see on slide 3, our fleet has an average age of 8.7 years compared to an industry average of 13.7 years. Our tanker fleet, with an average age of 5 years, is particularly young relative to the broader tanker market. Overall, Navios’ fleet modernization program has created a fleet almost 40% younger than the industry average and about 65% younger in comparison to the global tanker fleet.

Preparing us for the future, we believe the youth of our fleet provides a competitive advantage through, among other things, lower operating cost, better fuel efficiency, and higher charter rates. Please turn to slide 4. Navios is a leading maritime transportation company owning, operating, and chartering a modern fleet of 176 vessels across three segments and 15 asset classes. Our fleet is split into thirds by value, with about one-third in each of the tanker, dry bulk, and container segments.

The overall value of our fleet, including a newbuilding program, is $10.2 billion. Our fleet in the water has $4.8 billion in net vessel equity value. We continue to make headway in reducing our net LTV towards our target of 20–25%. At the quarter end we had a net LTV of 27.9%. Our balance sheet is strong with $625 million available liquidity and credit ratings of Ba3 from Moody's and BB from S&P. Please turn to Slide 5. Diversification is a core strength of Navios and our platform provides optionality across markets.

We complement this flexibility with a disciplined risk management culture, continuously monitoring and assessing our exposures, diligently evaluating and structuring transactions, and maintaining robust insurance coverage, particularly important in a war risk environment. Please turn to slide 6. Since the beginning of the year we have acted to capitalize on the robust tanker market and reposition our VLCC fleet for both the current cycle and the years ahead.

We initially sold two 16-year-old VLCCs for an aggregate amount of $136.5 million. The sale prices were approximately 18% above the prior historical peak for vessels of this age. We subsequently acquired seven newbuilding VLCCs for an aggregate purchase price of $844 million, including the one vessel that remains subject to ongoing discussions. We have entered into period charters for these vessels for average periods of 6.1 years at an average net daily rate of $45,224.

These transactions allow us to rebuild our VLCC fleet with modern tonnage supported by long-term employment. The associated charter arrangements are expected to generate approximately $700 million of revenue while reducing our residual value exposure, measured at the end of the initial charters, to roughly 40% below the 20-year historical average. Across the entire tanker segment, we have secured a total of $922 million of contracted revenue from 14 vessels with an average charter duration of approximately 5 years.

Of this total, $893 million relates to 11 newbuilding tankers. This strategy enhances cash flow visibility, modernizes the fleet, and positions the company to benefit from the current tanker market strength while retaining substantial upside for the next cycle. Turning to our dry bulk segment, there we are systematically rotating into larger, more fuel-efficient vessels while increasing the quality and visibility of our contracted cash flows. We sold two Panamax vessels with an average age of 18 years for aggregate profits of $22.8 million.

We then reinvested in three newbuilding Capesize vessels for an aggregate purchase price of $204 million. Two of these Capesize newbuildings have been fixed on five-year charters, providing a minimum of $86 million in contracted revenue, in addition to profit sharing. Potentially across the dry bulk fleet, we have secured $125 million of minimum contracted revenue from four vessels with an average charter duration of approximately three years. In containers, our focus is on harvesting the value of contracted backlog while preserving flexibility for future capital allocation.

We sold two 4,730 TEU vessels with an average age of 19 years for aggregate proceeds of $64.5 million. The remaining fleet continues to provide meaningful cash flow visibility, with $194 million of contracted revenue secured across six vessels with an average remaining charter duration of approximately three years. Overall, we have been monetizing mature assets at attractive values while building and maintaining contracted earnings and optionality.

Market and asset values evolve. Please turn to Slide 7, where we outline additional developments for the second quarter. Revenue was $410.2 million. EBITDA was $275.2 million. Net income was $167.9 million. Earnings per common unit were $5.78. In terms of our balance sheet, net LTV was 27.9%. Half of our total debt, or $1.3 billion, has no LTV covenant. Forty-three percent of our total debt is fixed rate. Our debt has a strong maturity profile with no near-term refinancing cliff.

We have $1.9 billion of debt-free vessel value across 55 vessels, representing potential incremental financing capacity. Available liquidity totaled $625 million. Contracted revenue backlog was $4.4 billion extending through 2037. For the second half of 2026, contracted revenue exceeded projected cash operating cost by $151 million as of August 12, 2026. Navios has 6,250 open or index-linked days in 2026, preserving participation in stronger spot markets while maintaining a substantial contracted earnings base.

Please turn to Slide 8. Navios Maritime Partners announced a new $200 million common unit repurchase authorization, double the size of our current program. We view this program as an important tool for creating value for our common unitholders, particularly when our units trade at a meaningful discount to underlying NAV. In allocating capital to a unit repurchase program, we consider the relative attractiveness of alternative uses of capital, including the availability of investments that can enhance long-term cash flow generation, the preservation of liquidity, maintaining prudent leverage, and safeguarding balance sheet strength.

All of this must be considered in the context of an industry that can change quickly. Since the repurchase program began in the second quarter of 2024, the company has repurchased 1.9 million common units for $92.6 million, including 135,846 units for $9.8 million in the second quarter of 2026. During the last 12 months we returned $46 million of capital to our unitholders, of which $6 million was cash distributions in addition to $40 million of unit repurchases.

Overall, the program has created $6.3 per unit of accretion. Common units outstanding declined by about 6% from 30.2 million before the program to 28.3 million as of August 12, 2026. Please now turn to Slide 9. Navios has been executing its strategy through a challenging environment; we are focused on building a platform of excellence. Over the past five years we have grown contracted revenue by more than 30% to a record high of $4.4 billion. We have an EBITDA run rate of over $900 million and have expanded our fleet value, including a newbuilding program, to $10.2 billion.

Importantly, we have not sacrificed financial discipline in achieving these goals. In this process, we reduced our net loan-to-value by 38% to 27.9%. We recognize that there is more work ahead, but in an uncertain world, we believe that our proven platform, combining a diversified fleet with a disciplined risk management culture, positions us to continue delivering value through any market condition. I now turn the presentation over to Mr. Stratos de Cypris, Navios Maritime Partners’ Chief Operating Officer.

Stratos de Cypris (Chief Operating Officer)

Thank you, Angeliki, and good morning, all. Please turn to Slide 10, which details our operating free cash flow potential for the remaining six months of 2026. We fixed 77% of available days at a net average rate of $28,800 per day. Contracted revenue exceeds estimated total cash operating cost by $151.2 million, and we have 6,250 remaining open or index-linked days offering meaningful upside. Moving to Slide 11, our contracted revenue backlog provides strong earnings visibility in an uncertain market.

Taking advantage of the current strong rate environment, we continue to grow contracted revenue in Q2 and Q3 quarter-to-date. We added approximately $666 million: $439 million from six tankers, $38 million from two dry vessels, and $129 million from four container ships. Total contracted revenue reached a record high of $4.4 billion: $2.0 billion for tankers, $2.1 billion for container ships, and $0.3 billion for dry. Bulk charters are extending through 2037 with a diverse group of quality counterparties.

Slide 12 summarizes the fleet developments for Q2 and Q3 quarter-to-date. During the period, we agreed to acquire three newbuilding VLCCs for $362 million, with delivery generally expected in the second half of 2028 and 2029. We also agreed to acquire one scrubber-fitted Japanese newbuilding Capesize vessel for $70 million. The vessel is expected to be delivered in the second half of 2029. We also sold one 19-year-old 4,730 TEU container ship for $34.5 million.

Additionally, we took delivery of one newbuilding Aframax vessel, which is chartered out for about five years at a net daily rate of $27,420. We continue to actively renew our fleet to maintain a young age profile. We have 29 newbuilding vessels delivering to our fleet through 2029, representing $2.5 billion of investment. Based on our financing, both agreed and in process, we have about $290 million of equity remaining to be paid. We have mitigated the residual value risk of our newbuilding program with long-term, creditworthy charters expected to generate about $1.8 billion in contracted revenue over a five-year average charter duration.

Moving to Slide 13, our diversified fleet provides revenue visibility and market exposure for the year. We have 53,546 available days, of which 88% are fixed and 12% are open or index. I would note that while we generally favor long-term charters, until recently period charters made little sense in the drybulk sector as the rates were weak for a prolonged period of time. Thus, about 24% of our drybulk fleet is open or index. I now pass the call to Eric Cigoni, our CFO, who will take you through the financial highlights.

Eric Cigoni, CFO

Thank you, Stratos, and good morning. I will briefly review our unaudited financial results for the second quarter and the first half of 2026. The financial information is included in the press release and is summarized in the slide presentation available on the company's website. Moving to the Earnings Highlights on Slide 14, total revenue for the second quarter of 2026 increased by 25% to $410 million compared to $328 million for the same period in 2025 due to a higher combined time charter equivalent rate.

Despite lower available days, our combined TCE rate for the second quarter of 2026 increased by 24% to $28,512 per day, while our available days decreased by 2% to 13,152 days compared to Q2 2025. In terms of sector performance, our TCE rate per day was higher by 53% to $23,682 for our bulkers and by 25% to $33,159 for our tankers. Our Q2 2026 TCE rate per day for our container ships was in line with 2025 levels at $31,191 per day. EBITDA, net income, and earnings per common unit for the second quarter and the first half of 2026 were adjusted as explained in the press release and in the slide footnote.

Adjusted EBITDA for Q2 2026 increased by $70 million to $242 million compared to Q2 2025. The increase was primarily driven by the increase in revenue and a $2 million decrease in vessel operating expenses due to a decrease in OPEX days. Fleet OPEX daily rate was in line with 2025 levels at $7,152. Adjusted EBITDA was negatively affected by a $14 million increase in time charter and voyage expenses, primarily reflecting additional insurance premiums reimbursed by charterers.

Adjusted net income for Q2 2026 increased by $71 million to $135 million. Adjusted earnings and earnings per common unit for Q2 2026 were $4.65 and $5.78, respectively. Total revenue for the first half of 2026 increased by 21% to $767 million compared to $632 million for the same period in 2025 due to a higher combined time charter equivalent rate despite lower available days. Our combined TCE rate for the first half of 2026 increased by 22% to $27,098 per day, while available days decreased by 2% to 26,256 days compared to 1H25.

In terms of sector performance, our TCE rate per day was higher in all three sectors: a 47% increase to $20,632 for our bulkers, a 24% increase to $32,694 for our tankers, and a 2% increase to $31,444 for our container ships. Adjusted EBITDA for 1H26 increased by $120 million to $446 million compared to 1H25. The increase was primarily driven by the increase in revenue and a $2 million decrease in vessel operating expenses due to a decrease in OPEX days.

Fleet OPEX daily rate was 2% higher than 2025 levels at $7,174. Adjusted EBITDA was negatively affected by a $15 million increase in time charter and voyage expenses, primarily reflecting additional insurance premiums reimbursed by charterers, and a $3 million increase in general and administrative expenses, mainly due to a higher euro–dollar exchange rate prevailing during 1H26. Adjusted income for the first half of 2026 increased by $121 million to $233 million.

Adjusted earnings and earnings per common unit for 1H26 were $8.00 and $9.42, respectively. Turning to Slide 15, I will briefly discuss some key balance sheet data as of 06-30-26. Cash and cash equivalents, including restricted cash and time deposits, were in excess of $469 million. In addition, we had $156 million available under two revolving credit facilities. During 1H26, we paid $190 million under our newbuilding program, net of debt, and we concluded the sale of four vessels for $123 million, adding about $99 million cash after debt retirement.

Long-term borrowings, including the current portion and the single unsecured bond, net of deferred fees, increased by $103 million to $2.26 billion. Following the delivery of five newbuildings during the first half of the year, net debt to book capitalization improved to 30.6%. Slide 16 highlights our debt structure. At quarter-end, we had 55 debt-free vessels, including 19 vessels securing our unutilized revolving credit facilities. We have a diversified financing base consisting of leasing structures in Japan and China, more than 15 active banking relationships, and a $330 million senior unsecured bond trading on the Oslo Bors.

In addition, 43% of our debt is fixed at an average interest rate of 6.3%, while 50% carries no loan-to-value covenant. We have also partly mitigated higher interest rate costs by lowering the average margin on our floating-rate debt and bareboat liabilities for the in-the-water fleet to 1.7%. I would like to note that the average margin for the committed floating-rate debt of our newbuilding program is 1.5%. Our maturity profile is staggered with no significant balloons due in any single year until 2030, when the bond matures.

Finally, in July we concluded the financing of one newbuilding Capesize vessel under a 10-year bareboat charter with purchase options, with an implied financing amount of $64.6 million and a 6% fixed interest rate. I now pass the call to Vincent Vandewale, Navios Maritime Partners Chief Trading Officer, to take you through the industry section.

Vincent Vandewale

Vincent, thank you. Eri, please turn to slide 18. Strait of Hormuz closure has created a major energy and shipping shock affecting about 20% of the worldwide crude, product, and LNG flows. The disruption has tightened tanker availability and driven freight rates sharply higher. Rates for VLCCs hit all-time highs reaching 600,000 per day and remain elevated with a significant portion of the fleet trapped inside the Gulf. The shortfall has been partially mitigated by increased crude volumes from the U.S., Brazil, Venezuela, Guyana heading to both Europe and Asia, adding more ton miles.

At the same time, renewed disruption in the Red Sea has led Saudi crude to alternatively being shipped via the Mediterranean to Asia. Higher fuel cost and security of supply concerns are driving the purchasing and transportation of commodities and finished goods. This has raised rates in the dry bulk sector for both Capesizes and Panamaxes and has continued to support container time-charter rates. The conflict in Ukraine and the recent Panama Canal draft reductions due to El Niño also act on most vessel types.

With negotiations between the U.S. and Iran at an impasse and the Strait of Hormuz and South Red Sea effectively closed, vessels’ utilization will continue to run at high levels, supporting elevated rates for the near term. Medium-term trade adjustments depend on how long oil prices stay elevated and whether demand for other commodities like coal rise to substitute for LNG or decreased fertilizer availability affects crop supply. Later this year, strategic and commercial crude and product reserves will need to be restocked, which should keep tanker rates elevated over the long term.

However, prolonged Hormuz closure could still trigger a global slowdown or a recessionary demand shock which could affect all shipping markets. Please turn to slide 20 for the review of the dry bulk industry. Demand growth for dry bulk trade has been relatively stable over the last 25 years at about 4% average annual ton-mile growth. The current order book stands about 14% of the total fleet and is expected to remain low due to high newbuilding prices, uncertainty about new fuel regulations, yard availability, and general market outlook.

The fleet is aging quickly with 39% of the vessels 15 years old. With older vessels far exceeding those on order, supply should be constrained over the medium term. Please turn to slide 21. The main driver of dry bulk demand will be strong Atlantic Basin iron ore growth over the next several years with new projects in Guinea, Brazil, and Iberia. The largest new project is Simandou in Guinea which started shipments at the end of last year and is expected to ramp up to 120 million by ’28.

By August, year-to-date shipments were about 9 million long-haul tonnes from zero last year. Vale in Brazil has three new projects totaling 50 million tonnes expected to start exporting by the end of ’26. Liberia adds 10 million tonnes of exports in 2016. In total, these 180 million tonnes are all long-haul ton-mile trades, creating demand for an additional 249 Capes with the current order book of only 227 due by ’28. A further tightening of supply and demand is expected over the next years, benefiting rates.

Overall, the dry bulk market looks positive based on steady long-term demand growth and a constrained supply of vessels. Please turn to slide 23 for the review of the tanker industry. As to supply, we see a tanker order book of 26%. About 50% of the fleet is already over 15 years old, rising quickly in the next few years with older vessels exceeding the order book and yards offering first deliveries in late ’28 or early ’29. Supply is set to be tight for several years.

Please turn to slide 24. The U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control, OFAC, the EU and the UK continue to sanction Russian, European and Iranian oil revenues and ships delivering their crude and product cargoes. The U.S. recently imposed sanctions on five Iranian-linked VLCCs and three product tankers along with sanctions on several individuals and companies involving trades in Iranian cargoes or aiding payments to Iran. These tight sanctions have two main effects.

Sanctioned oil volumes from these countries have more difficulty finding willing buyers, raising demand for compliant barrels and non-sanctioned vessels to carry that oil. With 875 mostly overage tankers now sanctioned, the fleet has already seen a significant reduction, about 15.3% of total capacity. The tanker market also looks positive over the medium term based on a low order book compared with an aging and reduced fleet due to sanctions. Please turn to slide 26 for a review of the container industry.

After the COVID pandemic, container ship orders were mainly for the biggest units, with fleet expansions in the large vessels set to continue at high level. Currently 72% of the order book for ships with 9,000 TEU capacity or greater and only 24 of the order book is for 2,000 to 9,000 TEU capacity where Navios Maritime Partners is most active. Note that by ’29 more than 50% of the 2,000 to 9,000 TEU fleet will be 20 years old or older. Smaller segments of the fleets are well positioned to take advantage of the shifting trading patterns as shown at the right-hand graph.

Growth in non-mainlane trades far exceeds the traditional mainlane trades to the U.S. and Europe due to the tariffs and higher growth in developing countries. Trades involving the Southern Hemisphere, mostly served by smaller-sized vessels, are expected to see continued healthy growth as this trade shift continues. Overall, Navios Maritime Partners’ fleet is well positioned within the container market and continues to benefit from long-term employment with our high-quality charterers.

This concludes our presentation. I would now like to turn the call over to Angeliki Frangou for her final comments. Angeliki.

Angeliki Frangou, Chairwoman and CEO

Thank you, Vincent. This completes the formal presentation. We open the call to questions.

OPERATOR

Thank you. If you'd like to ask a question, press star one on your keypad. To leave the queue at any time, press star two. Once again, that is star one if you'd like to ask a question. Our first question today will come from Omar Nokhta with Clarkson Securities. Your line is now open.

Omar Nokhta, Analyst at Clarkson Securities

Thank you. Hi Angeliki and team, nice update today and thank you for the overall market commentary and company update. You know, clearly, I guess as we think about things, there continues to be a good amount of uncertainty as you highlighted across the different markets. But freight rates are very firm across all of your segments and you've been taking advantage of that. And just wanted to ask about the dry bulk fleet as it is now, because that seems to be really where there is the most spot exposure, call it, or at least you do have vessels on charters that are on an index-linked basis.

And just wanted to get a sense from you as you look ahead with this fleet in particular, is the idea or the plan to continue deploying these vessels the way that they are, which is on these, call it, index charters, or do you start to look to convert some of these onto fixed rates or contracts?

Angeliki Frangou, Chairwoman and CEO

Good morning, Omar. I think this is a good observation. I mean, basically if you see on Stratos’ slide, we have about 6,250 days that are open and mainly index, you know, is dry bulk days. What we see is a very firm market. We have been able to fix even a very, very old Cape on two-and-a-half-year durations at healthy rates by historical standards. So you will see some contracted revenue because it's at levels that do make sense, but we also keep part also on index.

So you will have seen that we added in the contracted revenue, and Stratos can take you through a little bit on the recent deals with this.

Stratos de Cypris (Chief Operating Officer)

Actually, Omar, as Angeliki said, we have about 25% of our days for the second half of the year which are index on the dry bulk. This is very important because on index you see the strength of the spot market today and we are able to capture that 100% basically. And on top of that we have already fixed another two vessels on average of about two years. And as Angeliki pointed out, one of the vessels was a 21-year-old vessel which we fixed for two years, taking out the age 23 and a half.

So this is indication of a very healthy market with, you know, good prospects. People are clear that this market is there at least for the foreseeable future.

Omar Nokhta, Analyst at Clarkson Securities

Yeah, got it. Understood. Thanks for that color. And then maybe just one follow-up and I'll pass it back. Obviously nice to see the share buyback. You've nearly exhausted the original 100 million. You're commencing a new $200 million buyback you announced today. Just a really simple question. Does this new 200 replace what's left of the 100, or is the plan to finish off the remainder of the 100 million before shifting towards the new one?

Angeliki Frangou, Chairwoman and CEO

This is on top of the remaining. So we gave visibility as we are coming to the end of 100 million. We bought about 6% of our shares. So we are ready to position the company, doubling our buyback.

Omar Nokhta, Analyst at Clarkson Securities

Great. Okay. Well, thanks, Angeliki. I'll pass it back.

Angeliki Frangou, Chairwoman and CEO

Thank you.

OPERATOR

Thank you. And as a reminder, if you'd like to ask a question, please press star and one on your keypad now. And we'll move next to Christopher Shea with Arctic Securities. Your line is now open. And once again, we'll move next to Christopher Shea with Arctic Securities. Your line is now open.

Christopher Shea, Analyst at Arctic Securities

Hello, Angeliki. Thank you for taking my question, and congrats on another great quarter. So my question was a bit what Omar was touching upon. The LCD is now 27.9% as a quarter m, and I was wondering if you could give some guidance on when you expect the target to be reached and what do you expect that will change in terms of the capital allocation. And on the $200 million buyback program, is it fair to assume that we could expect more than $10 million a quarter?

Angeliki Frangou, Chairwoman and CEO

Hi, Christopher. The one thing I can tell you is that we doubled today’s buyback. And, you know, we have been doing that while we are building—quite significantly built—a lot of value for the company. And, you know, this buyback is measured by the considerations we have, which is we are renewing our fleet. We have a $4.2 billion newbuilding program, rebuilding and renewing our fleet quite significantly. And we are deleveraging at the same time. Leverage is about 27%, which is quite significantly reduced from when we started this process. So our buyback is based on an ability to have a flexible company to be able to operate in any market condition without creating stress in the system. So this is where we are, and we are working towards the 2020 5% level.

OPERATOR

Thank you. And we'll take our next question from Stephanie Moore with Jefferies. Your line is now open.

Peter Sullivan, Analyst at Jefferies (for Stephanie Moore)

Hey, good morning, good afternoon. This is Peter Sullivan calling on behalf of Stephanie Moore. My question was centered on counterparty concentration. Looking at revenue backlog standing at 4.4 billion going through 2037, how do you guys evaluate concentration risk within the backlog? Which metrics should investors focus on when assessing counterparty quality and then renewal risk across all three subsectors? And then as your backlog has expanded, has this changed over time?

Thanks for that.

Angeliki Frangou, Chairwoman and CEO

Risk is something very, very important. It's not about—as you very well said—you know, we have a backlog of 4.4 billion, which is quite significant and until 2037. But actually the most important thing is what we collect. So the risk management is quite significant. Because we are in different sectors, there's huge diversification between major oil companies to greenhouse to major container counterparties. So basically you have a lot of different entities, and Stratos can give a little bit on concentrations.

Stratos de Cypris (Chief Operating Officer)

I mean, if you see in the presentation, you can see that the counterparties that we have are basically, I would say, blue-chip counterparties — the top, highly rated names. And as Angeliki said, on the oil side, of course, you have oil majors and major oil players. But there is also diversification between the segments, so you are not exposed in just one segment. You see that the contracted revenue comes about 50/50 between containers and tankers, and this changes depending on the opportunities that you see in the market.

And we are always focusing on the quality of that counterparty in order to make sure that the counterparty can always perform the contract irrespective of the market conditions.

Peter Sullivan, Analyst at Jefferies (for Stephanie Moore)

Perfect, very helpful. And then as a follow-up, you've spoken about a longer-term reconfiguration of global supply flows driven by geopolitical and national security considerations. As shipping routes lengthen and vessel deployment patterns kind of evolve over time, how should investors think about the balance between the benefits of higher tonne-mile demand and then the associated increases with operating costs such as fuel, insurance, crewing, et cetera?

Then I'll pass on, thank you.

Angeliki Frangou, Chairwoman and CEO

Let me explain one thing. The longer tonne miles is like removing from the supply of vessels. I will give you an example. We thought the Red Sea under the previous conditions was long, taking 10 days more for the container vessels to go around the Cape of Africa today. The disruption that is happening with the Red Sea and the Strait of Hormuz, which basically the VLCCs cannot go down, that adds, via the Mediterranean, quite significantly more days.

You're talking about two and a half times the voyage. And Vincent has gone in depth on that. So the disruptions today add to the tonne miles. So basically we are paid for more days at sea.

Eric Cigoni, CFO

And just to add to what Angeliki is saying, for us, the longer miles and the fuel cost and the voyage expenses that are associated with it — because we are focusing mostly on time charters — for us, this is a pass-through. So basically, the rate environments that we see are benefiting operators like us that operate on longer-term duration in time charters, and the insurance cost.

OPERATOR

Thank you. And as a reminder, it is star one if you'd like to ask a question. Thank you. This does conclude today's question-and-answer session. I will now turn the meeting back to Angeliki for closing remarks.

Angeliki Frangou, Chairwoman and CEO

Thank you. This completes Q&A. Thank you.

OPERATOR

Thank you. This brings us to the end of today's meeting. We appreciate your time and participation. You may now disconnect.

Disclaimer: This transcript is provided for informational purposes only. While we strive for accuracy, there may be errors or omissions in this automated transcription. For official company statements and financial information, please refer to the company's SEC filings and official press releases. Corporate participants' and analysts' statements reflect their views as of the date of this call and are subject to change without notice.