SFL - First Quarter 2023 Results

Preliminary Q1 2023 results and quarterly cash dividend of $0.24 per share

Hamilton, Bermuda, May 15, 2023. SFL Corporation Ltd. ("SFL” or the "Company”) today announced its preliminary financial results for the quarter ended March 31, 2023.

Highlights

• 77^th consecutive quarterly dividend declared, increased to $0.24 per share
• Net profit of $6.3 million, or $0.05 per share in the first quarter
• Received charter hire¹ of $182.4 million in the quarter, including $4.9 million of profit share
• Adjusted EBITDA² of $102.6 million from consolidated subsidiaries, plus an additional $7.7 million adjusted EBITDA² from 49.9% owned associated companies
• New contract for ultra-deepwater drilling rig Hercules in Namibia for a period of approx. four months with start up in Q4 2023, adding approx. $50 million to charter backlog
• Extension of contracts for car carriers SFL Composer and SFL Conductor for a minimum period of three years, adding approx. $155 million to charter backlog
• Sale of two suezmax crude oil tankers and a chemical tanker in March and April 2023, and agreement to sell a chemical tanker with expected delivery in June 2023
• New financing arrangements totalling more than $1 billion
• Announced a buyback program of SFL shares of up to $100 million
  
  

Ole B. Hjertaker, CEO of SFL Management AS, said in a comment:

« The first quarter result was impacted by several one-off items, including the scheduled special survey for the drilling rig Hercules with significant costs and no revenues in the quarter. Following the announcement of new contracts for two of our existing car carriers and also the Hercules, we expect substantial earnings contribution from Q3 onwards from these assets.

The quarter was busy with more than $1 billion in new financings, including our newbuild dual-fuel car carrier programme, the convertible notes and refinancing of our drilling rigs. With this, virtually all our near term financing requirements and capital expenditure have been completed at very attractive terms.

And we continuously renew our fleet and are divesting older tankers traded in the spot market and focus on assets with charter backlog supporting our long term dividend distribution capacity. In addition, the Board has also authorized a repurchase of our common stock as part of the Company’s capital allocation strategy.»

Quarterly Dividend

The Board of Directors has declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.24 per share. The dividend will be paid on or around June 30, 2023, to shareholders of record as of June 16, 2023, and the ex-dividend date on the New York Stock Exchange will be June 15, 2023.

May 15, 2023
The Board of Directors
SFL Corporation Ltd.
Hamilton, Bermuda

The full report can be found in the link below and at the Company’s website www.sflcorp.com.

Questions may be directed to SFL Management AS:

Investor and Analyst Contact

Aksel C. Olesen, Chief Financial Officer: +47 23114036
André Reppen, Chief Treasurer and Senior Vice President: +47 23114055
Marius Furuly, Vice President - Finance: +47 23114016

Media Contact

Ole B. Hjertaker, Chief Executive Officer: +47 23114011

About SFL
SFL has a unique track record in the maritime industry and has paid dividends every quarter since its initial listing on the New York Stock Exchange in 2004. The Company’s fleet of vessels comprises of tanker vessels, bulkers, container vessels, car carriers and offshore drilling rigs. SFL’s long term distribution capacity is supported by a portfolio of long term charters and significant growth in the asset base over time. More information can be found on the Company's website: www.sflcorp.com

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward Looking Statements
This press release may contain forward looking statements. These statements are based upon various assumptions, many of which are based, in turn, upon further assumptions, including SFL management’s examination of historical operating trends, data contained in the Company’s records and other data available from third parties. Although SFL believes that these assumptions were reasonable when made, because assumptions are inherently subject to significant uncertainties and contingencies which are difficult or impossible to predict and are beyond its control, SFL cannot give assurance that it will achieve or accomplish these expectations, beliefs or intentions.
Important factors that, in the Company’s view, could cause actual results to differ materially from those discussed in the forward looking statements include the strength of world economies, fluctuations in currencies and interest rates, general market conditions in the seaborne transportation industry, which is cyclical and volatile, including fluctuations in charter hire rates and vessel values, changes in demand in the markets in which the Company operates, including shifts in consumer demand from oil towards other energy sources or changes to trade patterns for refined oil products, changes in market demand in countries which import commodities and finished goods and changes in the amount and location of the production of those commodities and finished goods, technological innovation in the sectors in which we operate and quality and efficiency requirements from customers, increased inspection procedures and more restrictive import and export controls, changes in the Company’s operating expenses, including bunker prices, dry-docking and insurance costs, performance of the Company’s charterers and other counterparties with whom the Company deals, the impact of any restructuring of the counterparties with whom the Company deals, and timely delivery of vessels under construction within the contracted price, governmental laws and regulations, including environmental regulations, that add to our costs or the costs of our customers, potential liability from pending or future litigation, potential disruption of shipping routes due to accidents, political instability, terrorist attacks, piracy or international hostilities, the length and severity of the ongoing coronavirus outbreak and governmental responses thereto and the impact on the demand for commercial seaborne transportation and the condition of the financial markets, and other important factors described from time to time in the reports filed by the Company with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. SFL disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

1 Charter hire represents the amounts billable in the period by the Company and its associates for chartering out vessels and rigs. This is mainly the contracted daily rate multiplied by the number of chargeable days plus any additional billable income, including profit share. Long term charter hire relates to contracts undertaken for a period greater than one year. Short term charter hire relates to contracts undertaken for a period less than one year, including voyage charters.
2 ‘Adjusted EBITDA’ is a non-U.S. GAAP measure. It represents cash receipts from operating activities before net interest, amortization, and capital payments.

Attachment

• SFL - First Quarter 2023 Results