Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:NCLH) shares are trading higher after the company reported better-than-expected third-quarter results and raised its annual forecasts.

NCLH reported third-quarter sales growth of 10.7% year-over-year to $2.806 billion, based on capacity growth of 4%, beating the consensus of $2.77 billion.

Operating income for the quarter was $691.21 million (+32.1% year-over-year) and margin increased 400 basis points to 24.6%.

Adjusted EPS improved to $0.99 from $0.76 a year ago, beating the consensus of $0.94.

Adjusted EBITDA increased 23.8% year-over-year to $930.99 million, and margin increased 352 basis points to 33.2%.

Occupancy for the quarter was 108.1% (106.1% a year ago) and total revenue per passenger cruise day increased approximately 4.8% year-over-year. Gross margin per capacity day increased 19% year-over-year.

NCLH’s total debt was $13.4 billion and its net leverage was 5.58x for the 12 months ending in September. Total cruise operating expenses increased to $1.54 billion from $1.48 billion last year.

Gross cruise costs per capacity day were approximately $314; Adjusted net cruise costs, excluding fuel per capacity day, were approximately $155.

The company’s fuel expenses were $165 million for the quarter. Fuel price per metric ton, net of hedges, decreased to $699 from $727 in 2023. Fuel consumption of 236,000 metric tons was as expected.

Liquidity at quarter end was $2.4 billion, including $332.5 million in cash and cash equivalents, $1.2 billion in availability under the revolving loan facility and an undrawn support commitment of $650 million.

“Fueled by robust demand and our continued focus on cost control and margin improvement, we are raising our full-year guidance for the fourth time and expect 2024 to be our best year ever in terms of revenue, net return growth and adjusted EBITDA. We now expect adjusted EBITDA to be $225 million higher than our initial forecast, growing 30% year-over-year, and adjusted EPS to be $0.42 higher than originally forecast, growing approximately 136% year-over-year, reflecting our ability to capitalize on the market. opportunities while delivering exceptional experiences across our brands,” commented Harry Sommer, President and CEO of Norwegian Cruise Line.

Fourth Quarter Outlook: NCLH expects adjusted EPS of approximately $0.09 and adjusted EBITDA of approximately $445 million. The company expects an occupancy rate of around 101%.

2024 outlook noted: Norwegian Cruise Line expects adjusted EPS of ~$1.65 (previously ~$1.53) vs. consensus of $1.58 and expects adjusted EBITDA of ~$2.425 billion (previously ~$1.53) ~$2.35 billion).

The company forecasts an occupancy rate of ~105% in 2024 (previously ~105.2%). The net yield is now expected to increase by around 9.5% (previously around 8.2%), as reported.

Price action: NCLH shares are trading up 8.2% at $25.80 at last check Thursday.

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This item Norwegian Cruise Line T3: Exceeds Expectations, Increases Occupancy and More originally appeared on Benzinga.com

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