Diana Shipping urges Genco shareholders to elect six nominees

Diana Shipping Inc. (NYSE: DSX) sent an open letter to Genco Shipping & Trading Limited (NYSE: GNK) shareholders urging them to elect six independent director nominees at Genco's 2026 annual meeting, according to a press release statement.

Diana, which owns approximately 14.8% of Genco's outstanding shares, has made a $23.50 per share all-cash offer to acquire Genco, backed by $1.433 billion in committed financing from DNB Carnegie and Nordea with participation from DNB, Nordea, BNP Paribas, Standard Chartered, Deutsche Bank and Danske Bank. The company initially proposed $20.60 per share in November 2025.

The letter states that Genco's board has refused to engage in meaningful discussions about the acquisition offer for five months. Diana claims Genco adopted a poison pill defense mechanism and lowered its triggering threshold to 10%.

Diana filed a preliminary proxy statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission nominating six director candidates: Gustave Brun-Lie, Paul Cornell, Chao Sih Hing Francois, Jens Ismar, Viktoria Poziopoulou, and Quentin Soanes.

The acquisition offer is structured in partnership with Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ: SBLK), which agreed to acquire 16 Genco vessels for $470.5 million in cash upon completion of Diana's acquisition.

Diana states its offer represents approximately 1.0x net asset value based on fleet values Genco reported in its fourth quarter 2025 presentation. The company notes Genco's shares have historically traded at an average 30% discount to net asset value since 2020.

Genco has not announced the date for its 2026 annual shareholders meeting. Diana's letter criticizes this delay, stating it represents a departure from Genco's established practice of mailing proxy statements in early-to-mid April and holding meetings in May.

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