There are two ways to grow a shipping company: buy more ships, or make the ships you already own worth more. International Seaways (INSW) is doing both at once.

The oil tanker operator announced Friday it will acquire Bruton Limited for $370 million, a deal that adds four VLCC vessels, including newbuildings, to a fleet that already numbers 70 ships. Investors liked the math: the stock traded higher in Friday's premarket session.

How the Bruton Deal Actually Works

This is a two-step transaction, and the structure matters. First, International Seaways will acquire about 50.5% of Bruton's outstanding shares, swapping 0.0519 INSW shares for each Bruton share. That exchange is expected to settle on or about Oct. 20.

Then comes the rest. The company will pick up the remaining Bruton shares through a cash-and-stock merger. All told, International Seaways expects to issue roughly 3.12 million INSW shares across the transactions, which works out to about 96% of the total consideration, with the balance paid in cash.

The Q3 Numbers Are the Real Story

Buried in the same announcement was a preliminary look at the third quarter, and the rate picture is striking. International Seaways expects shipping and other operating revenue of roughly $480 million to $490 million, with net income of about $340 million to $350 million. That net income figure includes an approximately $50 million gain from the sale of a 2012-built Suezmax.

Here's the number that jumps off the page: blended spot earnings came in at about $68,000 per day in the third quarter. That's down from $79,000 in the second quarter, but compare it to the $29,000 per day the company earned in the year-ago period. Year over year, rates have more than doubled.

And the fourth quarter is starting even hotter. During the first three weeks of the quarter, International Seaways fixed blended spot earnings of roughly $180,000 per day on about 37% of expected fourth-quarter revenue days. That's not a typo.

Liquidity stood at approximately $965 million as of Sept. 30, including $455 million in cash and short-term investments and $510 million of undrawn revolving credit capacity. Plenty of dry powder.

President and CEO Lois K. Zabrocky said the acquisition supports the company's fleet expansion strategy.

What Wall Street Is Expecting

International Seaways will release its third-quarter 2026 financial results before the market opens on Nov. 5, 2026. Analysts are looking for EPS of $3.63, up from $1.15 a year earlier, and revenue of $315.75 million, compared with $196.39 million in the prior-year period. The stock trades at a P/E ratio of 7.2 times.

INSW carries a Buy consensus rating with an average analyst price forecast of $94, ranging from $108 to $140 across five analysts. Recent analyst actions include:

• B. Riley Securities: Buy, price target raised to $140 on Oct. 5
• BTIG: Buy, price target raised to $130 on Sept. 18
• Jefferies: Buy, price target raised to $108 on Aug. 13

INSW Stock Price Activity: International Seaways shares traded 1.59% higher at $114.90 in premarket trading on Friday, according to market data.