Royal Caribbean Cruises is sailing full steam ahead with higher earnings, cruising past analyst consensus.
The New York-listed company posted a $472.8m profit for the second quarter versus a $466.3m a year ago.
On an adjusted basis, profit came in at $532.7m, compared to $482.2m during the same three-month period last year.
The latter results translated into earnings per share of $2.54, beating Wall Street's estimate of $2.45 and trumping 2018's figure of $2.27.
"We are elated to see our brands executing so effectively, keeping our business in an exceptionally strong position," chief executive Richard Fain said in a statement.
"Our strategic focus on destinations, technology and people is clearly paying off.
"And, our core products are doing exceptionally well, driven by a gratifyingly robust demand for the Caribbean."
Total revenue totaled $2.81bn, up from $2.34bn at the same timeframe for 2018.
Gross yields — a comparison of Royal Caribbean money spent versus money earned on bookings — gained 9.4% while net yields improved 9.5% on a constant-currency basis.
"Better demand for onboard experience as well as strong close-in demand for our core products fully offset the impact from the travel restrictions to Cuba, which equated to 30 basis points for the quarter," the company said.
Third-quarter, full-year outlooks
Royal Caribbean expects third-quarter EPS to come in at about $4.35, based on fuel pricing, Silversea Cruises' performance and other factors, offsetting US restrictions on sailing to Cuba.
Net yields are forecast to increase 6.5%, thanks to Silversea, the company's new cruise terminal and its Perfect Day at CocoCay development.
"These net yields were negatively impacted by approximately 110 basis points related to discontinuation of the Cuba sailings," the company said.
Capital spending
Based upon current ship orders, Royal Caribbean is set to spend $16.7bn through 2023 to increase capacity by 8.1% this year, 4.3% in 2020, 8.3% in 2021, 9.2% in 2022 and 4% in 2023.
"These figures do not include potential ship sales or additions that we may elect to make in the future."
