Costamare Inc. Reports 2024 Net Income of $290.7 Million

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Costamare Inc. reported unaudited financial results for the fourth quarter (“Q4 2024”) and year ended December 31, 2024.

I. PROFITABILITY AND LIQUIDITY

FY 2024 Net Income available to common stockholders of $290.7 million ($2.44 per share).
FY 2024 Adjusted Net Income available to common stockholders1 of $329.7 million ($2.76 per share).
Q4 2024 Net Income available to common stockholders of $29.7 million ($0.25 per share).
Q4 2024 Adjusted Net Income available to common stockholders1 of $82.3 million ($0.69 per share).
Liquidity of $941.6 million2.

II. OWNED FLEET CHARTER UPDATE3 – FULLY EMPLOYED CONTAINERSHIP FLEET FOR 2025

Forward fixing of 12 containerships for a period ranging from 16 to 38 months with incremental revenues of $332.6 million since the Q3 2024 earnings release.
96% and 69% of the containership fleet4 fixed for 2025 and 2026, respectively.
Contracted revenues for the containership fleet of approximately $2.4 billion with a TEU-weighted duration of 3.4 years5.
Entered into more than 50 chartering agreements for the owned dry bulk fleet since Q3 2024 earnings release.

III. SALE AND PURCHASE ACTIVITY

Vessel Acquisitions

Conclusion of the acquisition of:

the 2011-built, 179,546 DWT capacity dry bulk vessel, Magnes (ex. Nord Magnes).
the 2014-built, 61,090 DWT capacity dry bulk vessel, Alwine (ex. Alwine Oldendorff).
the 2015-built, 61,090 DWT capacity dry bulk vessel, August (ex. August Oldendorff).

Vessel Disposals

Conclusion of the sale of the 2012-built, 37,019 DWT capacity dry bulk vessel, Discovery generating net sale proceeds after debt prepayment of $7.7 million.
Agreement for the sale of the 2008-built, 76,619 DWT capacity dry bulk vessel, Rose (expected conclusion of the sale within Q1 – Q2 2025). Estimated net sale proceeds after debt prepayment of $4.1 million.

IV. NEW DEBT FINANCING / PREPAYMENT OF UNSECURED BONDS

Conclusion of refinancing/ financing of 36 dry bulk vessels through four bilateral term loan facilities with European financial institutions. More specifically:
Total drawn amounts: $339.3 million.
No increase in leverage with respect to the refinancings.
Repayment tenor of at least 5 years.
Improvement of funding cost.
No significant debt maturities until 2027.
Conclusion of the full prepayment with cash on hand of €100 million aggregate principal amount of unsecured bonds issued by our wholly owned subsidiary, Costamare Participations Plc.
Secured $100 million hunting license agreement with a European financial institution.

V. DRY BULK OPERATING PLATFORM

Costamare Bulkers Inc. (“CBI”) has currently fixed a fleet of 51 dry bulk vessels on period charters, consisting of:
36 Newcastlemax/ Capesize vessels.
15 Kamsarmax vessels.
Majority of the fixed fleet is on index linked charter-in agreements, consisting of:
32 charters for Newcastlemax/ Capesize vessels that are index linked.
10 charters for Kamsarmax vessels that are index linked.
Average remaining tenor for the Newcastlemax/ Capesize and Kamsarmax chartered-in fleet of 13 and 14 months, respectively.

VI. LEASE FINANCING PLATFORM

Controlling interest in Neptune Maritime Leasing Limited (“NML”).
Company’s current investment in NML of $123.3 million.
Growing leasing platform, currently funding or committed to funding 37 shipping assets as of the date of this press release, representing a total investment of approximately $505.7 million, on the back of what we believe is a healthy pipeline.

VII. DIVIDEND ANNOUNCEMENTS – SHARE REPURCHASE PROGRAM

On January 2, 2025, the Company declared a dividend of $0.115 per share on the common stock, which is payable on February 6, 2025, to holders of record of common stock as of January 21, 2025.
On January 2, 2025, the Company declared a dividend of $0.476563 per share on the Series B Preferred Stock, $0.531250 per share on the Series C Preferred Stock and $0.546875 per share on the Series D Preferred Stock, which were all paid on January 15, 2025 to holders of record as of January 14, 2025.

Mr. Gregory Zikos, Chief Financial Officer of Costamare Inc., commented:

“During the fourth quarter of the year, the Company generated adjusted Net Income of about $82 million. Our liquidity stands at around $940 million after repaying during the year a fixed rate bond of 100 million Euro and redeeming the Series E preferred stock of approximately $115 million.

In the containership sector the Red Sea crisis led to diversions via the much longer Cape of Good Hope route. These diversions, together with strong cargo demand, absorbed the incremental new building capacity. The commercially idle fleet remained low during 2024 and at the start of 2025. Should however liners gradually return to the Suez route, the release of tonnage, combined with new building capacity, could potentially distort the current supply and demand dynamics.

During the quarter we chartered on a forward basis 12 containerships with an average time charter duration of about two and a half years and estimated contracted revenues of close to $330 million.

The containership fleet employment stands at 96% and 69% for 2025 and 2026, respectively. Total contracted revenues amount to $2.4 billion with a remaining time charter duration of 3.4 years.

On the dry bulk market, charter rates dropped to their lowest levels of 2024 during the last quarter and have started 2025 on a similarly soft note. The easing of congestion, along with pressures in the China steel market and less grain ton-mile demand have resulted in tonnage oversupply.

As per our strategy to renew the owned fleet and increase its average size during the quarter we concluded the acquisition of one Capesize and two Ultramax vessels as well as the disposal of one Handysize ship, while we have agreed to sell one Panamax vessel.

CBI manages a fleet of 51 ships, the majority of which are on index-linked charter-in agreements. As mentioned in the past, we have a long-term commitment to the sector, and we view the vessel-owning and the trading platform as highly complementary activities.

Finally, with regards to Neptune Maritime Leasing, the platform continues to grow with a healthy pipeline, having total investments and commitments exceeding $500 million.”

Results of Operations

Three-month period ended December 31, 2024 compared to the three-month period ended December 31, 2023

During the three-month periods ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, we had an average of 104.7 and 111.6 vessels, respectively, in our owned fleet. In addition, during the three-month periods ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, through our dry bulk operating platform Costamare Bulkers Inc. (“CBI”) we chartered-in an average of 66.4 and 63.3 third party dry bulk vessels, respectively. As of February 4, 2025, CBI charters-in 51 dry bulk vessels on period charters.

During the three-month period ended December 31, 2024, we took delivery of the secondhand dry bulk vessels Magnes, Alwine and August with an aggregate DWT of 301,726 and we sold the dry bulk vessel Discovery with a DWT of 37,019.

During the three-month period ended December 31, 2023, we sold the dry bulk vessels Peace, Pride and Cetus with an aggregate DWT of 143,941 and the container vessel Oakland with a TEU capacity of 4,890.

Furthermore, during the three-month period ended December 31, 2023, we acquired the 51% equity interest of York Capital in the 2001-built, 1,550 TEU capacity containership Arkadia and as a result we obtained 100% of the equity interest in the vessel.

As of December 31, 2024, we have invested in NML the amount of $123.3 million. NML has been included in our consolidated financial statements since the second quarter of 2023.

In the three-month periods ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, our fleet ownership days totaled 9,633 and 10,267 days, respectively. Ownership days are one of the primary drivers of voyage revenue and vessels’ operating expenses and represent the aggregate number of days in a period during which each vessel in our fleet is owned.

Total Voyage Revenue

Total voyage revenue increased by 10.5%, or $51.7 million, to $542.2 million during the three-month period ended December 31, 2024, from $490.5 million during the three-month period ended December 31, 2023. The increase is mainly attributable to (i) increased revenue earned by CBI due to increased volume of its operations period over period, (ii) revenue earned by one container vessel acquired during the fourth quarter of 2023 and six dry bulk vessels acquired during the year ended December 31, 2024, (iii) increased charter rates in certain of our dry bulk vessels in the fourth quarter of 2024 compared to the fourth quarter of 2023 and (iv) decreased fleet off-hire and idle days in the fourth quarter of 2024 compared to the fourth quarter of 2023; partly offset by revenue not earned by ten dry bulk vessels sold during the year ended December 31, 2024.

Total voyage revenue adjusted on a cash basis (which eliminates non-cash “Accrued charter revenue”) increased by 10.0%, or $49.0 million, to $538.2 million during the three-month period ended December 31, 2024, from $489.2 million during the three-month period ended December 31, 2023. Accrued charter revenue for the three-month periods ended December 31, 2024 and 2023 was a negative amount of $3.8 million and a negative amount of $1.2 million, respectively.

Income from investments in leaseback vessels

Income from investments in leaseback vessels was $6.3 million and $4.3 million for the three-month periods ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively. Income from investments in leaseback vessels increased, period over period, due to the increased volume of NML’s operations during the three-month period ended December 31, 2024 compared to the three-month period ended December 31, 2023. NML acquires, owns and bareboat charters out vessels through its wholly-owned subsidiaries.

Voyage Expenses

Voyage expenses were $93.3 million and $90.0 million for the three-month periods ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively. Voyage expenses mainly include (i) fuel consumption mainly related to dry bulk vessels, (ii) third-party commissions, (iii) port expenses and (iv) canal tolls.

Charter-in Hire Expenses

Charter-in hire expenses were $185.1 million and $166.3 million for the three-month periods ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively. Charter-in hire expenses are expenses relating to chartering-in of third-party dry bulk vessels under charter agreements through CBI.

Voyage Expenses – related parties

Voyage expenses – related parties were $6.9 million and $3.7 million for the three-month periods ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively. Voyage expenses – related parties represent (i) fees of 1.25%, in the aggregate, on voyage revenues earned by our owned fleet charged by a related manager and a related service provider, (ii) charter brokerage fees (in respect of our container vessels) payable to two related charter brokerage companies for an amount of approximately $0.4 million and $0.4 million, in the aggregate, for the three-month periods ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively and (iii) address commission on certain charter-out agreements payable to a related agent (since the second quarter of 2024). This commission is subsequently paid in full on a back-to-back basis by the related agent to its respective third-party clients with no benefit for the related agent.

Vessels’ Operating Expenses

Vessels’ operating expenses, which also include the realized gain/(loss) under derivative contracts entered into in relation to foreign currency exposure, were $59.7 million and $64.0 million during the three-month periods ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively. Daily vessels’ operating expenses were $6,193 and $6,231 for the three-month periods ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively. Daily operating expenses are calculated as vessels’ operating expenses for the period over the ownership days of the period.

General and Administrative Expenses

General and administrative expenses were $6.3 million and $3.9 million during the three-month periods ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively, and include amounts of $0.67 million and $0.67 million, respectively, that were paid to a related service provider.

Management and Agency Fees – related parties

Management fees charged by our related party managers were $10.7 million and $11.7 million during the three-month periods ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively. The amounts charged by our related party managers include amounts paid to third party managers of $2.2 million and $3.8 million for the three-month periods ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively. Furthermore, during the three-month periods ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, agency fees of $3.3 million and $0.6 million, in aggregate, were charged by four related agents in connection with the operations of CBI.

General and Administrative Expenses – non-cash component

General and administrative expenses – non-cash component for the three-month period ended December 31, 2024 amounted to $1.9 million, representing the value of the shares issued to a related service provider on December 30, 2024. General and administrative expenses – non-cash component for the three-month period ended December 31, 2023 amounted to $1.5 million, representing the value of the shares issued to a related service provider on December 29, 2023.

Amortization of Dry-Docking and Special Survey Costs

Amortization of deferred dry-docking and special survey costs was $6.3 million and $5.3 million during the three-month periods ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively. During the three-month period ended December 31, 2024, two vessels underwent and completed their dry-docking and special survey and one vessel was in the process of completing her dry-docking and special survey. During the three-month period ended December 31, 2023, five vessels underwent and completed their dry-docking and special survey and two vessels were in the process of completing their dry-docking and special survey.

Depreciation

Depreciation expense for the three-month periods ended December 31, 2024 and 2023 was $41.7 million and $41.8 million, respectively.

Gain on Sale of Vessels, net

During the three-month period ended December 31, 2024, we recorded a gain of $0.4 million from the sale of the dry bulk vessel Discovery. During the three-month period ended December 31, 2023, we recorded a net loss of $1.0 million from the sale of the dry bulk vessels Peace, Pride and Cetus and the sale of the container vessel Oakland, which was classified as a vessel held for sale as of September 30, 2023.

Loss on Vessels Held for Sale

We did not record any loss on any vessels held for sale during the three-month period ended December 31, 2024. During the three-month period ended December 31, 2023, we recorded a loss on vessels held for sale of $2.3 million representing the expected loss from the sale of the dry bulk vessels Konstantinos and Progress during the next twelve-month period. Furthermore, during the three-month period ended December 31, 2023, the dry bulk vessels Manzanillo and Adventure were each classified as a vessel held for sale but no loss on vessels held for sale was recorded, since each vessel’s estimated fair value less costs to sell exceeded each vessel’s carrying value.

Vessel’s Impairment Loss

During the three-month period ended December 31, 2024, no impairment loss was recorded. During the three-month period ended December 31, 2023, we recorded an impairment loss in relation to one of our dry bulk vessels in the amount of $0.2 million.

Interest Income

Interest income amounted to $7.0 million and $6.9 million for the three-month periods ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively.

Interest and Finance Costs

Interest and finance costs were $33.2 million and $34.4 million during the three-month periods ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively. The decrease is mainly attributable to the decreased interest expense due to a lower average loan balance during the three-month period ended December 31, 2024, compared to the three-month period ended December 31, 2023.

Income / (Loss) from Equity Method Investments

Income/(loss) from equity method investments for the three-month period ended December 31, 2024, was nil (compared to income of $0.1 million for the three-month period ended December 31, 2023) representing our share in the jointly owned companies set up pursuant to the Framework Deed. During the three-month period ended December 31, 2023 we acquired the 51% equity interest of York Capital in the 2001-built, 1,550 TEU capacity containership Arkadia and as a result we obtained 100% of the equity interest in the vessel. As of December 31, 2023, two companies were jointly owned pursuant to the Framework Deed out of which none owned container vessels. As of December 31, 2024, there were no jointly owned companies pursuant to the Framework Deed.

Gain / (loss) on Derivative Instruments, net

As of December 31, 2024, we hold derivative financial instruments that qualify for hedge accounting and derivative financial instruments that do not qualify for hedge accounting. The change in the fair value of each derivative instrument that qualifies for hedge accounting is recorded in “Other Comprehensive Income” (“OCI”). The change in the fair value of each derivative instrument that does not qualify for hedge accounting is recorded in the consolidated statements of income.

As of December 31, 2024, the fair value of these instruments, in aggregate, amounted to a net liability of $7.4 million. During the three-month period ended December 31, 2024, a net gain of $12.1 million has been included in OCI and a net loss of $69.7 million has been included in Gain / (loss) on Derivative Instruments, net.

Net Cash Provided by Operating Activities

Net cash flows provided by operating activities for the three-month period ended December 31, 2024, decreased by $24.0 million to $128.9 million, from $152.9 million for the three-month period ended December 31, 2023. The decrease is mainly attributable to the unfavorable change in working capital position, excluding the current portion of long-term debt and the accrued charter revenue (representing the difference between cash received in that period and revenue recognized on a straight-line basis); partly offset by the increased cash from operations during the three-month period ended December 31, 2024 compared to the three-month period ended December 31, 2023, the decrease in interest payments (including interest rate derivatives net receipts) during the three-month period ended December 31, 2024 compared to the three-month period ended December 31, 2023 and the decreased dry-docking and special survey costs during the three-month period ended December 31, 2024 compared to the three-month period ended December 31, 2023.

Net Cash Used in Investing Activities

Net cash used in investing activities was $70.7 million in the three-month period ended December 31, 2024, which mainly consisted of (i) the settlement payment for the acquisition of the secondhand dry bulk vessel Magnes, (ii) payments for the acquisition of the secondhand dry bulk vessels Alwine and August, (iii) net payments for the investments into which NML entered, and (iv) payments for upgrades for certain of our container and dry bulk vessels; partly offset by proceeds we received from the sale of the dry bulk vessel Discovery.

Net cash used in investing activities was $33.3 million in the three-month period ended December 31, 2023, which mainly consisted of (i) an advance payment for the acquisition of the secondhand dry bulk vessel Miracle, (ii) payments for upgrades for certain of our container and dry bulk vessels, (iii) net payments for the investments into which NML entered and (iv) payments for the purchase of short-term investments in US Treasury Bills; partly offset by the proceeds we received from the sale of the container vessel Oakland and the dry bulk vessels Peace, Pride and Cetus.

Net Cash Used in Financing Activities

Net cash used in financing activities was $157.0 million in the three-month period ended December 31, 2024, which mainly consisted of (i) $30.4 million net payments relating to our debt financing agreements and finance lease liability agreement (including proceeds of $360.6 million we received from eight debt financing agreements), (ii) $105.0 million we paid for the full prepayment of our unsecured bond loan, (iii) $13.7 million we paid for dividends to holders of our common stock for the third quarter of 2024 and (iv) $0.9 million we paid for dividends to holders of our 7.625% Series B Cumulative Redeemable Perpetual Preferred Stock (“Series B Preferred Stock”), $2.1 million we paid for dividends to holders of our 8.500% Series C Cumulative Redeemable Perpetual Preferred Stock (“Series C Preferred Stock”) and $2.2 million we paid for dividends to holders of our 8.75% Series D Cumulative Redeemable Perpetual Preferred Stock (“Series D Preferred Stock”) for the period from July 15, 2024 to October 14, 2024.

Net cash used in financing activities was $101.0 million in the three-month period ended December 31, 2023, which mainly consisted of (i) $88.0 million net payments relating to our debt financing agreements and finance lease liability agreement (including proceeds of $12 million we received from one debt financing agreement), (ii) $9.3 million we paid for dividends to holders of our common stock for the third quarter of 2023 and (iii) $0.9 million we paid for dividends to holders of our Series B Preferred Stock, $2.1 million we paid for dividends to holders of our Series C Preferred Stock, $2.2 million we paid for dividends to holders of our Series D Preferred Stock and $2.5 million we paid for dividends to holders of our 8.875% Series E Cumulative Redeemable Perpetual Preferred Stock (“Series E Preferred Stock”) for the period from July 15, 2023 to October 14, 2023.

Results of Operations

Year ended December 31, 2024 compared to the year ended December 31, 2023

During the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, we had an average of 105.6 and 111.4 vessels, respectively, in our owned fleet. In addition, during the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, through CBI we chartered-in an average of 62.3 and 43.1 third-party dry bulk vessels, respectively. As of February 4, 2025, CBI has chartered-in 51 dry bulk vessels on period charters.

During the year ended December 31, 2024, we took delivery of the secondhand dry bulk vessels Miracle, Prosper, Frontier, Magnes, Alwine and August with an aggregate DWT of 843,679 and we sold the dry bulk vessels Manzanillo, Progress, Konstantinos, Merida, Alliance, Pegasus, Adventure, Oracle, Titan I and Discovery with an aggregate DWT capacity of 433,033.

During the year ended December 31, 2023, we (i) sold our 49% equity interest in the company owning the 2018-built, 3,800 TEU capacity containership, Polar Argentina to York Capital, (ii) acquired the 51% equity interest of York Capital in the 2018-built, 3,800 TEU capacity containership Polar Brasil and as a result we obtained 100% of the equity interest in the vessel and (iii) we acquired the 51% equity interest of York Capital of the 2001-built, 1,550 TEU capacity containership Arkadia and as a result we obtained 100% of the equity interest in the vessel.

In addition, during the year ended December 31, 2023, we acquired the secondhand dry bulk vessels Enna, Dorado and Arya with an aggregate DWT of 417,241 and we sold the container vessels Maersk Kalamata, Sealand Washington and Oakland with an aggregate TEU capacity of 18,182 and the dry bulk vessels Miner, Taibo, Comity, Peace, Pride and Cetus with an aggregate DWT of 248,655.

As of December 31, 2024, we have invested in NML the amount of $123.3 million. NML has been included in our consolidated financial statements since the second quarter of 2023.

In the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, our fleet ownership days totaled 38,661 and 40,652 days, respectively. Ownership days are one of the primary drivers of voyage revenue and vessels’ operating expenses and represent the aggregate number of days in a period during which each vessel in our fleet is owned.

Total Voyage Revenue

Total voyage revenue increased by 37.1%, or $557.5 million, to $2,060.0 million during the year ended December 31, 2024, from $1,502.5 million during the year ended December 31, 2023. The increase is mainly attributable to (i) increased revenue earned by CBI due to the increased volume of its operations year over year, (ii) increased charter rates in certain of our owned container and dry bulk vessels and (iii) revenue earned by two container vessels acquired during the second and fourth quarter of 2023, respectively, three dry bulk vessels acquired during the third quarter of 2023 and six dry bulk vessels acquired during the year ended December 31, 2024, (iv) decreased fleet off-hire and idle days in the year ended December 31, 2024 compared to the year ended December 31, 2023; partly offset by revenue not earned by one container vessel and six dry bulk vessels sold during the year ended 2023 and ten dry bulk vessels sold during the year ended December 31, 2024.

Total voyage revenue adjusted on a cash basis (which eliminates non-cash “Accrued charter revenue”) increased by 36.3%, or $547.0 million, to $2,052.6 million during the year ended December 31, 2024, from $1,505.6 million during the year ended December 31, 2023. Accrued charter revenue for the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023 was a negative amount of $6.8 million and a positive amount of $3.3 million, respectively.

Income from investments in leaseback vessels

Income from investments in leaseback vessels was $23.9 million and $8.9 million for the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively. Increased income from investments in leaseback vessels, year over year, is attributable to (i) the income earned from NML’s operations for the entire year ended December 31, 2024 (in 2023, we earned income from NML’s operations starting from the second quarter of 2023) and (ii) the increased volume of NML’s operations during the year ended December 31, 2024 compared to the year ended December 31, 2023. NML acquires, owns and bareboat charters out vessels through its wholly-owned subsidiaries.

Voyage Expenses

Voyage expenses were $371.1 million and $275.9 million for the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively. Voyage expenses increased, year over year, mainly due to CBI’s increased volume of operations during the year ended December 31, 2024 compared to the year ended December 31, 2023. Voyage expenses mainly include (i) fuel consumption mainly related to dry bulk vessels, (ii) third-party commissions, (iii) port expenses and (iv) canal tolls.

Charter-in Hire Expenses

Charter-in hire expenses were $706.6 million and $340.9 million for the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively. Charter-in hire expenses are expenses relating to chartering-in of third-party dry bulk vessels under charter agreements through CBI. Charter-in expenses increased, year over year, mainly due to CBI’s increased volume of operations during the year ended December 31, 2024 compared to the year ended December 31, 2023.

Voyage Expenses – related parties

Voyage expenses – related parties were $21.6 million and $14.0 million for the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively. Voyage expenses – related parties represent (i) fees of 1.25%, in the aggregate, on voyage revenues earned by our owned fleet charged by a related manager and a related service provider, (ii) charter brokerage fees (in respect of our container vessels) payable to two related charter brokerage companies for an amount of approximately $1.5 million and $1.4 million, in the aggregate, for the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively and (iii) address commissions on certain charter-out agreements payable to a related agent (since the second quarter of 2024). This commission is subsequently paid in full on a back-to-back basis by the related agent to its respective third-party clients with no benefit for the related agent.

Vessels’ Operating Expenses

Vessels’ operating expenses, which also include the realized gain/(loss) under derivative contracts entered into in relation to foreign currency exposure, were $240.2 million and $258.1 million during the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively. Daily vessels’ operating expenses were $6,213 and $6,349 for the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively. Daily operating expenses are calculated as vessels’ operating expenses for the period over the ownership days of the period.

General and Administrative Expenses

General and administrative expenses were $25.0 million and $18.4 million during the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively, and include amounts of $2.7 million and $2.7 million, respectively, that were paid to a related service provider.

Management and Agency Fees – related parties

Management fees charged by our related party managers were $43.6 million and $44.6 million during the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively. The amounts charged by our related party managers include amounts paid to third party managers of $10.5 million and $14.5 million for the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively. Furthermore, during the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, agency fees of $15.7 million and $11.7 million, in aggregate, were charged by four related agents in connection with the operations of CBI.

General and Administrative Expenses – non-cash component

General and administrative expenses – non-cash component for the year ended December 31, 2024 amounted to $8.4 million, representing the value of the shares issued to a related service provider on March 29, 2024, June 28, 2024, September 30, 2024 and December 30, 2024. General and administrative expenses – non-cash component for the year ended December 31, 2023 amounted to $5.8 million, representing the value of the shares issued to a related service provider on March 30, 2023, June 30, 2023, September 29, 2023 and December 29, 2023.

Amortization of Dry-Docking and Special Survey Costs

Amortization of deferred dry-docking and special survey costs was $23.6 million and $19.8 million during the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively. During the year ended December 31, 2024, 11 vessels underwent and completed their dry-docking and special survey and one vessel was in the process of completing her dry-docking and special survey. During the year ended December 31, 2023, 23 vessels underwent and completed their dry-docking and special survey and two vessels were in the process of completing their dry-docking and special survey.

Depreciation

Depreciation expense for the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023 was $164.2 million and $166.3 million, respectively.

Gain on Sale of Vessels, net

During the year ended December 31, 2024, we recorded a net gain of $3.8 million from (i) the sale of the dry bulk vessels Manzanillo, Progress and Konstantinos, each of which was classified as a vessel held for sale as of December 31, 2023, (ii) the sale of the dry bulk vessels Merida, Alliance and Pegasus, (iii) the sale of the dry bulk vessel Adventure which was classified as a vessel held for sale as of March 31, 2024 (initially classified as vessels held for sale as of December 31, 2023), (iv) the sale of the dry bulk vessel Oracle which was classified as a vessel held for sale as of June 30, 2024 and (v) the sale of the dry bulk vessels Titan I and Discovery. During the year ended December 31, 2023, we recorded an aggregate net gain of $112.2 million from (i) the sale of the container vessel Oakland, which was classified as a vessel held for sale as of September 30, 2023, (ii) the sale of the container vessels Maersk Kalamata and Sealand Washington, each of which was classified as a vessel held for sale as of December 31, 2022 (initially classified as vessels held for sale as of March 31, 2022), (iii) the sale of the dry bulk vessel Taibo, which was classified as a vessel held for sale as of March 31, 2023, (iv) the sale of the dry bulk vessels Peace, Pride, Cetus, Miner and Comity and (v) the result of the accounting classification of the container vessels Vela and Vulpecula as “Net investment in Sale type lease (Vessels)”.

Loss on Vessels Held for Sale

We did not record any loss on any vessels held for sale during the year ended December 31, 2024. During the year ended December 31, 2023, we recorded a loss on vessels held for sale of $2.3 million, representing the expected loss from the sale of the dry bulk vessels Konstantinos and Progress during the next twelve-month period. Furthermore, during the year ended December 31, 2023, the dry bulk vessels Manzanillo and Adventure were classified as vessels held for sale but no loss on vessels held for sale was recorded, since each vessel’s estimated fair value less costs to sell exceeded each vessel’s carrying value.

Vessels’ Impairment Loss

During the year ended December 31, 2024, no impairment loss was recorded. During the year ended December 31, 2023, we recorded an impairment loss in relation to two of our dry bulk vessels in the amount of $0.4 million in the aggregate.

Interest Income

Interest income amounted to $33.2 million and $32.4 million for the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively.

Interest and Finance Costs

Interest and finance costs were $133.1 million and $144.4 million during the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively. The decrease is mainly attributable to the decreased interest expense due to lower average loan balance during the year ended December 31, 2024, compared to the year ended December 31, 2023.

Income /(Loss) from Equity Method Investments

Income/(loss) from equity method investments for the year ended December 31, 2024, was nil (income of $0.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2023) representing our share in jointly owned companies set up pursuant to the Framework Deed. During the year ended December 31, 2023, we (i) sold our 49% equity interest in the company owning the 2018-built, 3,800 TEU capacity containership, Polar Argentina to York Capital, (ii) acquired the 51% equity interest of York Capital in the 2018-built, 3,800 TEU capacity containership Polar Brasil and as result we acquired the 100% equity interest in the vessel and (iii) acquired the 51% equity interest of York Capital in the 2001-built, 1,550 TEU capacity containership Arkadia and as a result we obtained 100% of the equity interest in the vessel. As of December 31, 2023 two companies, were jointly owned pursuant to the Framework Deed none of which owned container vessels. As of December 31, 2024, there were no jointly owned companies pursuant to the Framework Deed.

Gain / (loss) on Derivative Instruments, net

As of December 31, 2024, the fair value of these instruments, in aggregate, amounted to a net liability of $7.4 million. During the year ended December 31, 2024, a net loss of $4.0 million has been included in OCI and a net loss of $48.9 million has been included in Gain / (loss) on Derivative Instruments, net.

Net Cash Provided by Operating Activities

Net cash flows provided by operating activities for the year ended December 31, 2024, increased by $206.3 million to $537.7 million, from $331.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2023. The increase is mainly attributable to the increased cash from operations during the year ended December 31, 2024 compared to the year ended December 31, 2023, to the favorable change in working capital position, excluding the current portion of long-term debt and the accrued charter revenue (representing the difference between cash received in that period and revenue recognized on a straight-line basis), to the decrease in interest payments (including interest derivatives net receipts) during the year ended December 31, 2024 compared to the year ended December 31, 2023 and to the decreased dry-docking and special survey costs during the year ended December 31, 2024 compared to the year ended December 31, 2023.

Net Cash Provided by / (Used in) Investing Activities

Net cash used in investing activities was $79.5 million in the year ended December 31, 2024, which mainly consisted of (i) settlement payment for the delivery of the secondhand dry bulk vessel Miracle, (ii) payments for the acquisition of the secondhand dry bulk vessels Prosper, Frontier, Magnes, Alwine and August, (iii) payments for upgrades for certain of our container and dry bulk vessels and (iv) net payments for investments into which NML entered; partly offset by proceeds we received from the sale of the dry bulk vessels Manzanillo, Progress, Konstantinos, Merida, Alliance, Pegasus, Adventure, Oracle, Titan I and Discovery.

Net cash provided by investing activities was $79.1 million in the year ended December 31, 2023, which mainly consisted of proceeds we received from (i) the sale of the container vessels Sealand Washington, Maersk Kalamata and Oakland and the dry bulk vessels Miner, Taibo, Comity, Peace, Pride and Cetus and (ii) the maturity of our short-term investments in US Treasury Bills; partly offset by payments for the purchase of short-term investments in US Treasury Bills, payments for upgrades for certain of our container and dry bulk vessels, payments for the acquisition of the secondhand dry bulk vessels Enna, Dorado and Arya, an advance payment for the acquisition of the secondhand dry bulk vessel Miracle and net payments for the investments into which NML entered.

Net Cash Used in Financing Activities

Net cash used in financing activities was $505.5 million in the year ended December 31, 2024, which mainly consisted of (i) $209.0 million net payments relating to our debt financing agreements and finance lease liability agreement (including proceeds of $528.0 million we received from 18 debt financing agreements), (ii) $116.0 million we paid, in aggregate, for the full redemption of our Series E Preferred Stock, (iii) $105.0 million we paid, for the full prepayment of our unsecured bond loan, (iv) $43.6 million we paid for dividends to holders of our common stock for the fourth quarter of 2023, the first quarter of 2024, the second quarter of 2024 and the third quarter of 2024 and (v) $3.8 million we paid for dividends to holders of our Series B Preferred Stock, $8.5 million we paid for dividends to holders of our Series C Preferred Stock, $8.7 million we paid for dividends to holders of our Series D Preferred Stock for the period from October 15, 2023 to January 14, 2024, January 15, 2024 to April 14, 2024, April 15, 2024 to July 14, 2024 and July 15, 2024 to October 14, 2024 and $5.1 million we paid for dividends to holders of our Series E Preferred Stock for the period from October 15, 2023 to January 14, 2024 and January 15, 2024 to April 14, 2024.

Net cash used in financing activities was $396.8 million in the year ended December 31, 2023, which mainly consisted of (a) $256.0 million net payments relating to our debt financing agreements and finance lease liability agreement (including proceeds of $576.2 million we received from eight debt financing agreements), (b) $60.0 million we paid for the re-purchase of 6.3 million of our common shares, (c) $39.1 million we paid for dividends to holders of our common stock for the fourth quarter of 2022, the first quarter of 2023, the second quarter of 2023 and the third quarter of 2023 and (d) $3.8 million we paid for dividends to holders of our Series B Preferred Stock, $8.5 million we paid for dividends to holders of our Series C Preferred Stock, $8.7 million we paid for dividends to holders of our Series D Preferred Stock and $10.2 million we paid for dividends to holders of our Series E Preferred Stock for the periods from October 15, 2022 to January 14, 2023, January 15, 2023 to April 14, 2023, April 15, 2023 to July 14, 2023 and July 15, 2023 to October 14, 2023.

Liquidity and Unencumbered Vessels

Cash and cash equivalents

As of December 31, 2024, we had Cash and cash equivalents (including restricted cash) of $777.9 million, $18.5 million invested in short-dated US Treasury Bills (short-term investments) and $45.2 million margin deposits in relation to our FFAs and bunker swaps. Furthermore, our liquidity stands at approximately $941.6 million accounting for $100.0 million of a hunting license facility subject to final documentation.
Source: Costamare Inc.

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