Oil Demand, Aging Tankers Mean Profits for OMI (OMM) December 11, 2000 -- OMI runs a fleet of tankers and other marine vessels that transport oil. Volatility in the market for tankers made investors reluctant to buy OMI, but these concerns are "overblown" says turnaround expert George Putnam. He predicts OMI will enjoy strong earnings for several more years at least, and he likes the stock as it sells for less than 6x this year's earnings and 4x next year's.

Putnam sees no letup in demand for tankers; world oil inventories are low, usage keeps climbing, and he foresees "no sharp curtailment of oil production." Meanwhile, the world's oil tanker fleet is aging; Putnam says over one-third are 20+ years old even though environmental concerns mandate newer double-hulled vessels. The industry scraps more than they build, and that means business for OMI's high-demand tankers.

http://www.investools.com/cgi-bin/IT/advisory/archive?date=20001211

-- Martin Thompson (mthom1927@aol.com), December 12, 2000