Diana Shipping escalated its pursuit of Genco Shipping & Trading on Friday, raising its all-cash offer to $23.50 per share in a sweetened bid backed by a $1.43 billion financing package and a strategic vessel-sale agreement with Star Bulk Carriers.
The revised offer from Diana Shipping (NYSE:DSX) represents a 14% increase over its initial November 2024 proposal of $20.60, which was rejected by the Genco board.
The new price tags a 31% premium on Genco’s (NYSE:GNK) undisturbed share price from late 2025 and values the company at approximately 1x its estimated Net Asset Value (NAV), according to Clarksons Securities.
To fund the acquisition, Diana has secured $1.433 billion in fully committed financing from a syndicate of major international lenders, including DNB, Nordea, BNP Paribas, and Deutsche Bank.
In a concurrent move to optimize the resulting fleet, Diana entered into a definitive agreement with Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK), which will purchase 16 of Genco’s vessels for $470.5 million in cash immediately following the close of the merger.
Diana Shipping currently owns approximately 14.8% of Genco's outstanding common stock.
Management noted that the increased bid is intended to bypass previous board resistance by offering Genco shareholders an implied dividend yield of over 9% based on 2026 analyst estimates.