Weekly Investment Analysts’ Ratings Updates for Norwegian Cruise Line (NCLH)

A number of firms have modified their ratings and price targets on shares of Norwegian Cruise Line (NASDAQ: NCLH) recently:

2/7/2019 – Norwegian Cruise Line was upgraded by analysts at BidaskClub from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating. 2/6/2019 – Norwegian Cruise Line was upgraded by analysts at Morgan Stanley from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating. They now have a $62.00 price target on the stock, up previously from $58.00. 2/6/2019 – Norwegian Cruise Line was upgraded by analysts at TheStreet from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating. 1/30/2019 – Norwegian Cruise Line was upgraded by analysts at BidaskClub from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating. 1/16/2019 – Norwegian Cruise Line had its “buy” rating reaffirmed by analysts at Deutsche Bank AG. They now have a $65.00 price target on the stock. 1/11/2019 – Norwegian Cruise Line was downgraded by analysts at Zacks Investment Research from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating. According to Zacks, “Norwegian Cruise Line is being aided by higher passenger ticket revenues owing to increased demand for cruise travel. Its focus on the lucrative Chinese market is also impressive. In 2017, the company announced a partnership with Alibaba Group. Norwegian Cruise Line’s measures to expand its fleet size too bode well. In line with its fleet upgrade efforts, the company ordered two next-generation ships in January 2019. They will be delivered between 2022 and 2025. Each ship will accommodate approximately 1,200 guests. The company’s efforts to reward its shareholders through buybacks are added positive. On the flip side, similar to the third quarter of 2018, high costs are likely to hurt the company’s bottom line in the fourth quarter. Moreover, the company's high debt levels raise concerns. In fact, shares of Norwegian Cruise Line have declined 17.8% in a year's time.” 1/9/2019 – Norwegian Cruise Line was upgraded by analysts at Zacks Investment Research from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating. They now have a $49.00 price target on the stock. According to Zacks, “Norwegian Cruise Line is being aided by higher passenger ticket revenues owing to increased demand for cruise travel. Its focus on the lucrative Chinese market is also impressive. In 2017, the company announced a partnership with Alibaba Group. Norwegian Cruise Line’s measures to expand its fleet size too bode well. In line with its fleet upgrade efforts, the company ordered two next-generation ships in January 2019. They will be delivered between 2022 and 2025. Each ship will accommodate approximately 1,200 guests. The company’s efforts to reward its shareholders through buybacks are added positive. On the flip side, similar to the third quarter of 2018, high costs are likely to hurt the company’s bottom line in the fourth quarter. Moreover, the company's high debt levels raise concerns. In fact, shares of Norwegian Cruise Line have underperformed its industry in a year's time.” 1/8/2019 – Norwegian Cruise Line was upgraded by analysts at Sanford C. Bernstein from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating. 1/7/2019 – Norwegian Cruise Line was downgraded by analysts at TheStreet from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating. 12/26/2018 – Norwegian Cruise Line was given a new $65.00 price target on by analysts at Wedbush. They now have a “buy” rating on the stock.

Norwegian Cruise Line stock traded up $0.57 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $51.88. 828,300 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,067,004. Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. has a 52 week low of $39.36 and a 52 week high of $59.66.

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Norwegian Cruise Line (NASDAQ:NCLH) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 8th. The company reported $2.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the Zacks’ consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $1.86 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.85 billion. The business’s revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.86 EPS.

In other Norwegian Cruise Line news, major shareholder Apollo Management Holdings Gp, sold 15,728,782 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.50, for a total value of $794,303,491.00. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Rio Frank J. Del sold 6,154 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.44, for a total transaction of $310,407.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 295,767 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,918,487.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 15,744,513 shares of company stock worth $795,081,886 in the last ninety days. 0.98% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NCLH. Capital World Investors grew its stake in Norwegian Cruise Line by 49.4% in the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 15,620,156 shares of the company’s stock worth $897,066,000 after buying an additional 5,168,349 shares in the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund boosted its stake in shares of Norwegian Cruise Line by 10,307.1% in the 4th quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 2,332,849 shares of the company’s stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 2,310,433 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Norwegian Cruise Line by 14.6% in the 4th quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 14,287,003 shares of the company’s stock valued at $605,627,000 after purchasing an additional 1,817,368 shares in the last quarter. FIL Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Norwegian Cruise Line in the 3rd quarter valued at $61,910,000. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in shares of Norwegian Cruise Line by 9.3% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 11,002,326 shares of the company’s stock valued at $631,864,000 after purchasing an additional 934,851 shares in the last quarter. 88.85% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. (NCLH) is a global cruise company. The Company operates the Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises brands. The Company had 25 ships with approximately 50,400 Berths, as of May 1, 2017. The Company’s brands offer itineraries to various destinations around the world, including Europe, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, South America, Africa, Canada, Bermuda, Caribbean, Alaska and Hawaii.

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