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Norwegian Cruise Line (NCLH) Surpasses Market Returns: Some Facts Worth Knowing

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Norwegian Cruise Line (NCLH - Free Report) closed at $19.73 in the latest trading session, marking a +1.39% move from the prior day. The stock outperformed the S&P 500, which registered a daily gain of 0.38%. Elsewhere, the Dow saw an upswing of 0.29%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq appreciated by 0.62%.

Coming into today, shares of the cruise operator had lost 4.28% in the past month. In that same time, the Consumer Discretionary sector lost 1.13%, while the S&P 500 gained 1.61%.

The investment community will be paying close attention to the earnings performance of Norwegian Cruise Line in its upcoming release. The company's earnings per share (EPS) are projected to be $0.39, reflecting a 23.53% decrease from the same quarter last year. Meanwhile, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenue is projecting net sales of $2.63 billion, up 4.27% from the year-ago period.

Regarding the entire year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates forecast earnings of $1.71 per share and revenue of $10.14 billion, indicating changes of -18.96% and +3.18%, respectively, compared to the previous year.

Investors should also note any recent changes to analyst estimates for Norwegian Cruise Line. Such recent modifications usually signify the changing landscape of near-term business trends. As a result, upbeat changes in estimates indicate analysts' favorable outlook on the business health and profitability.

Empirical research indicates that these revisions in estimates have a direct correlation with impending stock price performance. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.

The Zacks Rank system, stretching from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has a noteworthy track record of outperforming, validated by third-party audits, with stocks rated #1 producing an average annual return of +25% since the year 1988. The Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0.57% higher within the past month. At present, Norwegian Cruise Line boasts a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).

Investors should also note Norwegian Cruise Line's current valuation metrics, including its Forward P/E ratio of 11.39. This denotes a discount relative to the industry average Forward P/E of 16.36.

It is also worth noting that NCLH currently has a PEG ratio of 1.07. Comparable to the widely accepted P/E ratio, the PEG ratio also accounts for the company's projected earnings growth. As the market closed yesterday, the Leisure and Recreation Services industry was having an average PEG ratio of 1.41.

The Leisure and Recreation Services industry is part of the Consumer Discretionary sector. This industry, currently bearing a Zacks Industry Rank of 172, finds itself in the bottom 31% echelons of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

Be sure to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and many more, on Zacks.com.

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