DOW JONES NEWSWIRES 
 

Aegean Marine Petroleum Network Inc.'s (ANW) first-quarter profit more than tripled on surging revenue fueled in part by higher prices.

But shares dropped 5.9% to $25.08 in after-hours trading Wednesday as the Greek shipping-fuel supplier's revenue fell short of Wall Street's expectations and the company said it agreed to acquire the Shell Las Palmas terminal in the Canary Islands from Shell Espana SA. The price was not disclosed.

Aegean, which operates in 15 markets, has seen its revenue increase sequentially on growing volumes after a drop during the worst of the global recession. The company took delivery of three ships during the quarter and expects to add more vessels this year. In March, it completed its largest acquisition, of Verbeke Bunkering NV, a marine-fuel supplier in the Antwerp-Rotterdam-Amsterdam region, the world's second-largest bunkering port.

For the latest quarter, Aegean reported a profit of $14.1 million, or 30 cents a share, up from $4.4 million, or 10 cents a share, a year earlier. Revenue more than doubled to $843.4 million on higher prices while volume climbed 31% on improvements in Singapore and the United Arab Emirates. Results in the latest quarter included volumes from Aegean's new markets in Morocco and Trinidad and Tobago.

Analysts estimated earnings of 30 cents on revenue of $851 million, according to a poll by Thomson Reuters.

Operating margin slid to 2.1% from 2.3% as the cost of petroleum products more than doubled.

-By Kathy Shwiff, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2357; Kathy.Shwiff@dowjones.com