Wilbur Ross Backed Navigator Files For $200 Million IPO

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Navigator Holdings Ltd., owner and operator of the largest fleet of handy-size liquefied gas carriers, filed for an initial public offering (IPO) with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Thursday.

Wilbur Ross Backed Navigator Files For $200 Million IPO

Navigator Holdings’ IPO

Based on its regulatory filing, Navigator Holdings Ltd plans to raise $200 million from the IPO, and it will be trading its stock at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the ticker symbol “NVGS”. WLR Group, a firm affiliated with billionaire investor Wilbur Ross, is one of the largest investors with a 60.6 percent stake in the company.

Jefferies LLC (NYSE:JEF) and Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) serve as joint book-runners, while Evercore Group, Fearnly Securities As, Global Hunter Securities LLC, and Stifel Nicolaus & Company serve as co-managers for the offering.

According to Navigator Holdings Ltd, it has 30 semi- or fully-refrigerated handy size liquefied gas carriers, including a second-hand vessel that is contracted to acquire for delivery in 2013, and seven new vessels scheduled for delivery by August 2015. In addition, the company has the option to build two more vessels for delivery by 2016.

Navigator earnings

It offers regional and international seaborne transportation services of liquefied petroleum gas, petrochemical gasses, and ammonia for commodity traders, energy companies, and industrial users. Navigator Holdings Ltd said its vessels earned an average charter equivalent of $874,500 per vessel every month, or $28,750 per day, during the six months that ended June 30th.

Navigator Holdings Ltd reported a net income of $19.1 million, EBITBA of $47.7 million, and  $102.8 million operating revenue over the past six months that ended June 30th, 2013. For the year 2012, the company generated 30.3 million net income, $63.9 million EBITDA and $146.7 million operating revenue.

Navigator Holdings’ clients

The three largest clients of the company include PT Pertamina, Indonesia’s state-owned producer of hydrocarbons, Tomza Group, a Mexican LPG distribution company, and and Petróleos de Venezuela S.A., Venezuela’s state-owned integrated oil and petrochemical company. Its revenue from these clients accounts for 36.6 percent of its aggregate revenue last year.

The majority of the members of the board of directors of Navigator Holdings Ltd are based outside the United States. The company indicated that it would be difficult to serve legal procedures against the company and its leadership within the United States.

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