UPDATE: DryShips Q4 Profit Misses Expectations, Shares Decline

Shares of

slipped over 2% in after-hours trading after the company reported weaker-than-expected results for the fourth quarter. The Athens, Greece-based company posted a quarterly net loss of $24.0 million, or $0.04 per share, versus a year-ago net loss of $24.4 million, or $0.06 per share. Excluding items, the company earned $14.1 million, or $0.02 per share. The latest quarter results included $0.06 per share in impairment charge on one drybulk vessel. Its total revenue climbed to $598.4 million from $431.4 million. However, analysts were expecting earnings of $0.04 per share on revenue of $551.68 million. For the drybulk carrier segment, net voyage revenue rose to $46.1 million in the quarter, from $45.4 million, in the year-ago period. For the tanker segment, net voyage revenue climbed to $23.9 million from $11.9 million. For the offshore drilling segment, revenue from drilling contracts jumped to $499.4 million from $345.5 million. Adjusted EBITDA climbed to $298.7 million in the fourth quarter, up from $179.8 million, in the year-ago quarter. George Economou, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Company, said, "Our results were driven by another excellent quarter by Ocean Rig who continues to execute on its business plan with high operating utilization. While the short-term outlook for the industry is not as bright as it was a year ago, Ocean Rig with it's modern fleet, solid contract backlog and strong balance sheet is well positioned not only to weather the storm but also to take advantage of distressed opportunities as they arrive." DryShips shares fell 2.06% to $0.9990 in after-hours trading.