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recorded gains of more than 7% on Monday after releasing unaudited FY2016 financial report, supported by robust growth in sales and a narrower loss. The company reported that it closed the year with a loss of $0.09 per share as compared to $4.21 per share recorded in the previous year. The revenue surged 117% YoY to $28.4 million while adjusted EBITDA came at $16.2 million. TOPS Ships, which offers seaborne transportation services globally, has 4.65 million shares due and a market cap of around $16 million.

The buzz

TOP SHIPS a global ship-owning firm reported that it has finalized a definitive securities purchase deal with an institutional investor to raise almost $3 million in a private placement of around 3,100 Series ‘B’ Convertible Preferred Shares. The firm closed on the preliminary portion of 1,579 Series ‘B’ Convertible Preferred Shares in November 2016 for gross proceeds of almost $1.5 million.

TOP SHIPS’ common shares trade on the NASDAQ platform under the ticker “TOPS.”  Currently, the firm has over 5 million common shares issued and unpaid. The Series “B” Convertible Preferred Shares are not intended to be listed on national securities exchanges. Also, they have no recognized public trading market and the firm does not anticipate a market to advance for the Series “B” Convertible Preferred Shares.

The Series “B” Convertible Preferred Shares conversion may lead in a change of the exercise price of the firm’s unpaid warrants which were released on June 11, 2014. TOP SHIPS reported that the securities to be offered in the private placement will not be recorded under the “Securities Act of 1933”, as modified, or state securities laws as per issuance time and may not be sold or offered in the U.S. absent registration with the SEC or an applicable exception from such registration checks. The firm has agreed to submit required registration statements with the U.S. SEC registering the common stock issuable upon the Series “B” Convertible Preferred Shares conversion.