Gulf Marine Services stands by outlook but earnings hit by conflict

Gulf Marine Services PLC shares were higher on Monday as it reported decreased adjusted revenue and earnings, but reaffirmed its guidance for the full year.

Gulf Marine's stock was up 2.8% at 19.04 pence on Monday afternoon in London.

The London- and Abu Dhabi-based operator of self-propelled self-elevating support vessels for the offshore energy industry reported adjusted revenue of USD84.1 million for the first half of 2026, down 3% from USD87.1 million the previous year. Statutory revenue declined 8.7% to USD79.5 million from USD87.1 million.

Adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation fell 14% to USD43.8 million from USD50.8 million.

In both cases, the decline was "mainly due to the impact of the conflict in the Gulf."

"As announced in early March 2026, four vessels were temporarily evacuated in a Gulf country as a precautionary measure," Gulf Marine noted. "All these vessels were back to hire on the same contracts by middle of June 2026.

"The estimated loss of revenue due to war was USD11.6 million while the impact on adjusted Ebitda and net profit amounted to USD12.8 million. Management is engaged in active discussions with clients to recover the revenue loss."

The firm also noted that "a large vessel was under preparation for its contract in Europe during the first three months of the year and only commenced its charter operations on [April 1] 2026."

Gulf Marine booked a net loss of USD14.8 million for the first half, flipped from a USD3.9 million the prior year. Gross profit dropped 94% to USD2.0 million from USD35.9 million, which "mainly resulted from the recognition of impairment loss on property and equipment and impact of regional conflict," and adjusted net profit fell 51% to USD6.9 million from USD14.1 million.

Looking ahead, Gulf Marine maintained its guidance range of USD105 million to USD115 million in adjusted Ebitda for 2026, although this "assumes the situation will not return to active military actions."

"The first half of the year was significantly impacted by disruptions resulting from the war in the Gulf, but our core business remains strong with improved average day rates and higher backlogs," commented Executive Chair Mansour Al Alami. "Supported by expansion in Latin America alongside fully operational assets deployed in Europe, performance is expected to rebound in the second half of 2026."

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