Ermis Maritime: Taking It On The Chin

by Alan Ginsberg

The toughest thing about seeing Ermis Maritime Holdings join the lower tier of high yield shipping issuers is that it did not have be that way. The Alafouzos Family has established a reputation as a quality operator of newbuildings and secondhand tonnage, maintaining the ships to a high standard and then receiving better than average prices when it came time to sell the vessels on. While it is a sweeping generalization to state that Greek owners are reluctant to sell ships to one another, nevertheless, the Alafouzos Family has been able to do just that and get top dollar as well. In this article we will endeavor to explore why this issue was so poorly received in the capital markets. As we shall see, Merrill Lynch’s maiden voyage as lead (and, in this case, sole) underwriter of a high yield shipping deal was a rocky one.

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