Hapag-Lloyd: Outlook for 2015 Stays Unchanged

Responding to queries received following Maersk’s cutting of profit outlook on Friday, German shipping company Hapag-Lloyd said that its outlook for 2015 remains unchanged.

Namely, Danish shipping and energy conglomerate Maersk lowered its expectations for Maersk Line’s business results for 2015 amid depressed market.

The previous expectation was based on an underlying result contribution from Maersk Line above USD 2.2bn. However, this has been reduced to USD 1.6bn.

” Hapag-Lloyd reiterates its outlook for 2015 as provided in the IPO prospectus published on October 14, 2015,” the company said in a statement.

“Based on current trading, the EBITDA margin in September is expected to be in line with the information provided in the IPO prospectus for July and August. For the full year 2015 the outlook remains unchanged, Hapag-Lloyd is expecting a high single-digit EBITDA margin,” the statement further reads.

Hapag-Lloyd plans to list its initial public offering (IPO) on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and the Hamburg Stock Exchange by the end of 2015.

The container shipping company expected total gross proceeds of USD 500 million from the IPO.

A total of USD 400 million would stem from the sale of newly issued shares to institutional and retail investors.

In addition, the company’s main shareholders Kuehne Maritime (Kuehne) and Compania Sud Americana de Vapores (CSAV) were to in the IPO with USD 100 million, by placing USD 50 million each.

However, the company has trimmed down its expectations to USD 300 million amid market pressures and low freight rates.

World Maritime News Staff