American Classic
stock halted after
plunging 37 percent

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By Dave Segal
dsegal@starbulletin.com

American Classic Voyages Co.'s stock plunged 37 percent today before trading was halted as speculation swirled about the cruise line's future.

The parent of the Honolulu-based ms Patriot and the Kahului, Maui-based S.S. Independence did not return phone calls to its Florida office.

The shares, which were down 27 cents to 46 cents when trading was stopped for pending news, have dropped more than 95 percent since the start of the year.

Raymond James analyst Joe Hovorka downgraded the stock this morning to "sell" from "market perform" because of concern over the company's financial situation.

"The financial situation has not been that great at American Classic and we feared a bankruptcy," he said. "I think they'll come out filing Chapter 11 or something along those lines."

At least one Hawaii vendor, Paradise Beverages, said it was told to cancel delivery of its next order. The company provides beer and nonalcoholic beverages to the cruise lines.

A Hawaii travel agency, which asked to be kept anonymous, said reservation agents' computer systems have been altered this week to take only reservations and not any credit-card information.