Tidewater upbeat on earnings

Source: Tidewater

Tidewater Inc. (NYSE: TDW) announced today that it expects fiscal third quarter financial results to exceed current earnings expectations.

For the three months ended December 31, 2006, the company is currently estimating diluted earnings per share between $1.61 and $1.68. This estimate includes a $0.07 per share gain from the December 2006 sale of three of the company's offshore tug vessels to Crosby Marine Transportation, LLC.

The Thomson First Call consensus estimate for the December 31, 2006 quarter is currently $1.45 per share.

Tidewater Inc. owns over 470 vessels, the world's largest fleet of vessels serving the global offshore energy industry.