Norwegian Cruise Line (NYSE:NCLH) Stock Price Down 5% on Analyst Downgrade

Key Points

• Shares fell about 5% after Stifel Nicolaus cut its price target to $27 (maintaining a buy rating); the stock traded as low as $19.61 and last at $19.95 on much lighter volume (~5.6M vs. a 21.7M average).
• Multiple firms trimmed targets, leaving a MarketBeat consensus average price target of $24.58 and an overall rating of "Moderate Buy" (2 Strong Buy, 10 Buy, 11 Hold).
• Large institutional investors have been increasing positions (institutional ownership ~69.6%), while the company posted a slight EPS beat but missed revenue and shows high leverage (debt-to-equity 6.21).

Shares of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:NCLH - Get Free Report) were down 5% on Monday after Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on the stock from $28.00 to $27.00. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a buy rating on the stock. Norwegian Cruise Line traded as low as $19.61 and last traded at $19.9460. Approximately 5,606,885 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 74% from the average daily volume of 21,690,969 shares. The stock had previously closed at $20.99.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on NCLH. Bank of America decreased their target price on Norwegian Cruise Line from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Truist Financial decreased their target price on Norwegian Cruise Line from $26.00 to $25.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Norwegian Cruise Line from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Susquehanna reduced their target price on shares of Norwegian Cruise Line from $21.00 to $20.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Norwegian Cruise Line in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $24.58.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Norwegian Cruise Line

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Norwegian Cruise Line by 1,505.9% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 6,793,256 shares of the company's stock worth $151,625,000 after purchasing an additional 6,370,241 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors lifted its holdings in shares of Norwegian Cruise Line by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 56,177,669 shares of the company's stock worth $1,253,886,000 after purchasing an additional 3,728,929 shares in the last quarter. Freestone Grove Partners LP lifted its holdings in shares of Norwegian Cruise Line by 338.8% in the 3rd quarter. Freestone Grove Partners LP now owns 3,690,333 shares of the company's stock worth $90,893,000 after purchasing an additional 2,849,349 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley lifted its holdings in shares of Norwegian Cruise Line by 43.6% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 8,520,548 shares of the company's stock worth $190,179,000 after purchasing an additional 2,586,395 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $68,251,000 after purchasing an additional 2,389,540 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 69.58% of the company's stock.

Norwegian Cruise Line Stock Down 4.9%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.21, a current ratio of 0.21 and a quick ratio of 0.18. The company has a market cap of $9.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 2.11. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $21.01 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $21.31.

Norwegian Cruise Line (NYSE:NCLH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 2nd. The company reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 firm posted $0.26 EPS. Norwegian Cruise Line's 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. On average, research analysts expect that Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. will post 1.48 EPS for the current year.

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.

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