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Norwegian Cruise Line (NCLH) Exceeds Market Returns: Some Facts to Consider

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Norwegian Cruise Line (NCLH - Free Report) closed the most recent trading day at $19.43, moving +1.94% from the previous trading session. The stock exceeded the S&P 500, which registered a gain of 0.5% for the day. Meanwhile, the Dow experienced a rise of 0.7%, and the technology-dominated Nasdaq saw an increase of 0.31%.

Shares of the cruise operator witnessed a gain of 19.65% over the previous month, beating the performance of the Consumer Discretionary sector with its gain of 1.82%, and the S&P 500's loss of 0.23%.

Market participants will be closely following the financial results of Norwegian Cruise Line in its upcoming release. The company is forecasted to report an EPS of $0.39, showcasing a 23.53% downward movement from the corresponding quarter of the prior year. In the meantime, our current consensus estimate forecasts the revenue to be $2.62 billion, indicating a 4.23% growth compared to the corresponding quarter of the prior year.

For the annual period, the Zacks Consensus Estimates anticipate earnings of $1.68 per share and a revenue of $10.14 billion, signifying shifts of -20.38% and +3.17%, respectively, from the last year.

It is also important to note the recent changes to analyst estimates for Norwegian Cruise Line. Recent revisions tend to reflect the latest near-term business trends. With this in mind, we can consider positive estimate revisions a sign of optimism about the business outlook.

Our research demonstrates that these adjustments in estimates directly associate with imminent stock price performance. To exploit this, we've formed the Zacks Rank, a quantitative model that includes these estimate changes and presents a viable rating system.

The Zacks Rank system, which varies between #1 (Strong Buy) and #5 (Strong Sell), carries an impressive track record of exceeding expectations, confirmed by external audits, with stocks at #1 delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has shifted 6.81% downward. Norwegian Cruise Line is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #5 (Strong Sell).

In terms of valuation, Norwegian Cruise Line is currently trading at a Forward P/E ratio of 11.35. This expresses a discount compared to the average Forward P/E of 15.94 of its industry.

Meanwhile, NCLH's PEG ratio is currently 1.07. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. The Leisure and Recreation Services was holding an average PEG ratio of 1.35 at yesterday's closing price.

The Leisure and Recreation Services industry is part of the Consumer Discretionary sector. At present, this industry carries a Zacks Industry Rank of 184, placing it within the bottom 25% of over 250 industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank evaluates the power of our distinct industry groups by determining the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks forming the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

Make sure to utilize Zacks.com to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and more, in the coming trading sessions.

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