Insider Buying: Norwegian Cruise Line (NYSE:NCLH) Director Purchases 695,000 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• Insider buying: Norwegian Cruise Line director Stephen Pagliuca purchased 695,000 shares at an average price of $18.16, a transaction worth about $12.6 million. After the buy, he owned 703,912 shares, a massive increase in his position.
• Shares were slightly higher: NCLH traded up 0.2% to $18.17 on heavy volume, near its 50-day moving average but still below its 200-day average. The stock has ranged between $14.53 and $27.18 over the past year.
• Recent performance and outlook: The company beat Q1 earnings expectations with $0.23 EPS, though revenue came in slightly below estimates. Analysts currently have a Hold consensus rating with an average price target of $20.95.

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:NCLH - Get Free Report) Director Stephen Pagliuca bought 695,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $18.16 per share, with a total value of $12,621,200.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 703,912 shares in the company, valued at $12,783,041.92. This trade represents a 7,798.47% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

Norwegian Cruise Line Trading Up 0.2%

NYSE:NCLH traded up $0.04 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $18.17. The company's stock had a trading volume of 23,678,670 shares, compared to its average volume of 22,514,408. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.75, a current ratio of 0.21 and a quick ratio of 0.18. The stock has a market cap of $8.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.26, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.89. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $18.28 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $20.28. Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. has a twelve month low of $14.53 and a twelve month high of $27.18.

Norwegian Cruise Line (NYSE:NCLH - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The company reported $0.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.08. Norwegian Cruise Line had a return on equity of 47.84% and a net margin of 5.66%.The firm had revenue of $2.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.36 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.07 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Norwegian Cruise Line has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.380-0.380 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 1.450-1.790 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. will post 1.48 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Norwegian Cruise Line

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Capital International Investors grew its position in Norwegian Cruise Line by 7.1% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 56,177,669 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,253,886,000 after purchasing an additional 3,728,929 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Norwegian Cruise Line by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 52,846,173 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,179,527,000 after buying an additional 157,974 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its position in Norwegian Cruise Line by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 16,304,827 shares of the company's stock worth $363,924,000 after buying an additional 66,329 shares in the last quarter. Elliott Investment Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Norwegian Cruise Line during the 1st quarter valued at $246,578,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Norwegian Cruise Line by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,205,008 shares of the company's stock valued at $271,951,000 after buying an additional 262,086 shares during the period. 69.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Northcoast Research downgraded Norwegian Cruise Line from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on shares of Norwegian Cruise Line from $25.00 to $20.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Wolfe Research reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $25.00 target price on shares of Norwegian Cruise Line in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Norwegian Cruise Line in a report on Wednesday. They set a "market perform" rating and a $18.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Norwegian Cruise Line from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $20.95.

About Norwegian Cruise Line

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. NYSE: NCLH is a global cruise operator offering a portfolio of premium brands that includes Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises. The company provides sea voyages and related onboard services such as dining, entertainment, shore excursions and destination experiences. Its fleet of modern vessels sails to more than 400 destinations across all seven continents, serving leisure travelers with itineraries ranging from short Caribbean getaways to extended world voyages.

Founded in 1966 by Knut Kloster and Ted Arison, the company pioneered the concept of “Freestyle Cruising,” which allows passengers greater flexibility in dining schedules, entertainment choices and onboard activities.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.