Norwegian Cruise Line (NYSE:NCLH) Raised to "Hold" at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research upgraded Norwegian Cruise Line (NCLH) from a "strong sell" to a "hold."
• NCLH's latest quarter showed a slight EPS beat ($0.28 vs. $0.27) but a revenue miss ($2.24B vs. $2.34B), and the company set Q1 2026 guidance at 0.160 EPS and FY 2026 guidance at 2.380 EPS.
• Analysts' consensus is a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $25.53, while the stock trades near $19.97 and carries mixed ratings across firms (2 Strong Buy, 10 Buy, 11 Hold).

Norwegian Cruise Line (NYSE:NCLH - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report issued on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on NCLH. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $20.00 price target on shares of Norwegian Cruise Line in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Norwegian Cruise Line from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $26.00 to $20.00 in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of Norwegian Cruise Line from $32.00 to $28.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Norwegian Cruise Line from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, TD Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Norwegian Cruise Line in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $25.53.

Norwegian Cruise Line Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of NCLH opened at $19.97 on Thursday. The company's fifty day moving average is $21.21 and its 200 day moving average is $21.51. Norwegian Cruise Line has a fifty-two week low of $15.31 and a fifty-two week high of $27.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.10 billion, a PE ratio of 22.95, a P/E/G ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 2.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.21, a quick ratio of 0.18 and a current ratio of 0.21.

Norwegian Cruise Line (NYSE:NCLH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 2nd. The company reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.27 by $0.01. Norwegian Cruise Line had a net margin of 4.31% and a return on equity of 50.05%. The company had revenue of $2.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.34 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.26 earnings per share. Norwegian Cruise Line's quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. Norwegian Cruise Line has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.160-0.160 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 2.380-2.380 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Norwegian Cruise Line will post 1.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Norwegian Cruise Line

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in NCLH. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Norwegian Cruise Line by 1,505.9% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 6,793,256 shares of the company's stock valued at $151,625,000 after purchasing an additional 6,370,241 shares during the period. Capital International Investors lifted its stake in Norwegian Cruise Line by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 56,177,669 shares of the company's stock worth $1,253,886,000 after acquiring an additional 3,728,929 shares during the period. Freestone Grove Partners LP lifted its stake in Norwegian Cruise Line by 338.8% in the third quarter. Freestone Grove Partners LP now owns 3,690,333 shares of the company's stock worth $90,893,000 after acquiring an additional 2,849,349 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley lifted its stake in Norwegian Cruise Line by 43.6% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 8,520,548 shares of the company's stock worth $190,179,000 after acquiring an additional 2,586,395 shares during the period. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. lifted its stake in Norwegian Cruise Line by 626.3% in the third quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,771,061 shares of the company's stock worth $68,251,000 after acquiring an additional 2,389,540 shares during the period. 69.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Norwegian Cruise Line Company Profile

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.

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