Royal Caribbean Group sustained almost $6bn in losses last year as a result of Covid-19's deadly grip on the company and entire cruise sector since March.
The New York-listed cruise major posted a full-year deficit of $5.8bn for 2020, in contrast to a 2019 profit of $1.9bn, which marked a record year for both company and industry.
Adjusted net loss for 2020 came in at $3.9bn versus adjusted earnings of $2bn for 2019. The Miami-based owner recorded a $18.31 adjusted loss per share for the 12-month period against an adjusted $8.95 earnings per share for the prior year.
"The Covid-19 pandemic is having a painful and profound impact on our world and our business. Unquestionably, this crisis is the most difficult in the company's history," chief executive Richard Fain said.
Royal Caribbean suspended fleet operations last March and has extended the lay-up for most ships until at least April 30.
$1.4bn loss for fourth quarter
The company posted a $1.4bn loss for the fourth quarter, compared with a $273m profit a year earlier.
On an adjusted basis, Royal Caribbean took in a $1.1bn deficit for the three-month period against a $297m profit a year ago.
These figures produced an adjusted net loss of $5.02 for the last three months of 2020, beating analyst consensus of $5.20 loss per share but falling well short of $1.42 per share a year ago.
"These results reflect the staggering impact the pandemic brought to our company and the whole industry during 2020," chief financial officer Jason Liberty said.
Royal Caribbean estimates its cash burn to be, on average, in the range of $250m to $290m per month. It had liquidity of about $4.4bn as of 31 December, including $3.7bn in cash and a $700m 364-day credit facility.
The company said about 75% of bookings made for 2021 are new and 25% are due to redemption of cruise credits.
As of 31 December, Royal Caribbean had $1.8bn in customer deposits, half of which are related to cruise credits.
Since the March suspension, about 53% of the guests booked on cancelled sailings have asked for cash refunds.
Royal Caribbean could not "reasonably estimate" its 2021 financial outlook, given the impact of Covid-19, but still expects to record a loss for all of 2019.
The company's shares, which trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol RCL, have improved 10.5% to $87.12 on Wall Street as of midday trading on Monday.
