Question-and-Answer Session
Thank you [Operator Instructions]. First question comes from line Natasha Boyden with Cantor Fitzgerald. Please go ahead
Natasha Boyden - Cantor Fitzgerald
Thank you. Good morning ladies and gentlemen.
Unidentified Company Representative
Good morning.
Natasha Boyden - Cantor Fitzgerald
Hi. Just seeing given the market losing, your stocks trading at significant discount to AV. Given the... you really focus now on spending your cash on purchasing shares versus the more acquisitions at this time?
Myles Itkin - Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer
I think we're going to continue with our balance growth strategy. We're going to look as always, the maintenance strong balance sheet and for liquidity, and we will lay the alternative of continuing to buyback stock with opportunities that come up in the market. Is there obviously a disconnect between the value of OSG today and the share price?
Yes, but I think you can say approximately every company listed in the stock exchange today, but we will continue to operate the company with the same approach we have up to now, and now we think we're in a good position to do so. No change.
Natasha Boyden - Cantor Fitzgerald
Okay great. Myles, I think you touched on this basically in your remarks, but talking about counterparty risk, overseas it's been a huge issue in the dry dock market. Have... any have any of your indicated that they may not be out for further obligations. How do you go about maintaining your relations with them and obviously monitoring them, and can you just sort of touch on that a little further?
Myles Itkin - Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer
Yes. There's been no indications of renegotiations or inability to be in obligations. We are in constant contact with our major charters, many of whom are major oil companies and trading companies. So based both on personal contact and typical credit analysis, we get a good sense of their current positions.
Natasha Boyden - Cantor Fitzgerald
Okay, great. Thank you. May be this one's for, Jonathan. We've heard reports that U.S. Gulf oil production was fairly significantly effect this by the hurricane season, and than that just drove some capacity offline. Is there any effect on your on U.S. operations?
Jonathan P. Whitworth - Senior Vice President and Head of U.S. Flag Strategic Business Unit
Good morning. You have attended in the third quarter; there was a dramatic decrease in refinery output, thanks to Gustav and Hurricane Ike. Fortunately for OSG, we have very little exposure to the stock markets. So the vessels that we did have during that period, or actually all term chartered out. So we really felt no financial and also more importantly saw no operational distress from those event. And we've also seen the utilization of those refinery outputs increased to somewhat about 88% within the fourth quarter. So it had come back strong.
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