New York-listed Diana Shipping has made a bold move into the ultramax sector with a $330m strike for nine vessels from the fleet of private Connecticut-based owner Sea Trade Holdings. The cash-and-shares deal announced on Thursday sees Diana take out what appears to be Sea Trade’s entire fleet while increasing its own stable by roughly a quarter. The Sea Trade sales comes after the company’s early plans to launch a public company in New York did not result in a completed initial public offering.

Semiramis Paliou-led Diana is to pay for the ultramaxes, aged an average 5.4 years, with a combination of $220m in cash and $110m worth of Diana shares, with 18.49m units to be transferred at a price of $5.95 each. Online platform VesselsValue has placed a price tag of $282m on the Sea Trade fleet, suggesting continued firm valuations in the dry bulk market. Once completed, the deal will push Diana’s fleet to 43 units, including four newcastlemax, 11 capesize, five post-panamax, six kamsarmax and eight panamax bulkers. The buy will expand Diana’s carrying capacity to 4.9m dwt from the current 4.5m dwt, while reducing the weighted average age, which is currently at 10.3 years.

Sea Trade Holdings is based in Stamford and built its fleet in Japanese shipyards Mitsui Engineering & Shipbuilding and Japan Marine United between 2015 and 2018. TradeWinds reported in 2013 that the outfit was formed as a joint venture between Greek-Cypriot Leventis David Group – the former owner of Navios Maritime – and London-based Zela Shipping led by the Mouskas family. The partners started with a deal to build four ultramax newbuildings with a goal of building to between eight and 10 units ahead of a planned public listing in New York. That listing did not come to pass.

While the two partners were said to share the same Cypriot roots, Leventis David had not been closely involved in shipping since it sold its majority shareholding in then bulk operator Navios to Angeliki Frangou’s International Shipping Enterprises in 2005. Under Leventis David, Navios was one of the leading ultramax operators with a modern mixed fleet of owned and time-chartered tonnage.

Diana’s ability to use shares to fund part of the transactions evokes similar moves by larger Greek owner Star Bulk Carriers in consolidation steps that have made it the market’s biggest player. Diana’s shares have been on a run in 2022, having soared about 49% year to date.