Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings’ share price rocketed 19% in afternoon trading as investors ignored a deeper-than-expected quarterly loss to focus on a bullish outlook for the year ahead.
The jump added about $1.3bn in market capitalisation in a single day, based on 425m of its New York-listed shares outstanding.
The cruise shipping giant, one of the three industry titans headquartered in Miami, reported a $106m net loss for the fourth quarter of last year, which was an improvement on the $482m in red ink in the same period of 2022.
An adjusted loss earnings per share of $0.18, which factors out items typically excluded from analyst estimates, was slightly below the average Wall Street bet calling for a loss of $0.14 per share.
No matter. Investors were focused squarely on the company’s outlook.
After the Wave booking season in which cruise customers book their voyages for the rest of the year, the Norwegian said it is at an “all-time high” booked position for 2024.
“We have continued to see exceptional demand for our Norwegian Cruise Line brand, with bookings and pricing at higher levels than 2023 for all four quarters of 2024,” the company said in an earnings report.
“Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises also continue to see strong demand across all geographies, with the exception of redeployed itineraries due to cancellations in the Middle East and Red Sea.”
Norwegian said it expects to deliver $635m in adjusted net income for 2024, more than double the $298m pocketed in 2023.
The company forecast $1.23 in adjusted EPS for the year, which is even with the average analyst estimate, although the company noted that its figure is based on the potential impact of bond conversions later this year that could dilute equity.
“Looking ahead, we are determined to capitalise on our recent achievements and take advantage of the positive momentum and strong demand for cruise which resulted in turning the year at all-time highs in both our booked position and pricing,” chief executive Harry Sommer said.
Norwegian’s outlook also helped lift shares of its rivals, with Carnival Corp seeing a 7.5% jump in New York trading and Royal Caribbean Group shares gaining 2.8%.
For the full year, Norwegian reported net income of $166m, reversing a $2.3bn loss in 2022.
