Royal Caribbean Guidance Misses Views
February 02 2016 - 10:00AM
Dow Jones News
Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (RCL) issued 2016 and first-quarter
earnings guidance below expectations and the cruise-ship operator
reported that its fourth-quarter revenue rose 4.6%.
Shares fell 5.9% to $79.56 in recent premarket trading as fourth
quarter revenue was slightly below expectations.
For 2016, the Miami company forecast per-share earnings of $5.90
to $6.10. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected per-share
profit of $6.27.
For the current quarter, the company forecast per-share earnings
of roughly 30 cents. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected
per-share profit of 46 cents.
During the December quarter, Royal Caribbean's revenue increased
to $1.9 billion from $1.82 billion, below analysts' expectations
for revenue of $1.96 billion.
Excluding currency effects, net yields—a key measure of
performance for the sector—rose 4.9%, near the high end of
expectations for growth of between 4.5% and 5%. The growth was
driven by stronger demand in the Caribbean and new cruises in
China.
Royal Caribbean's profit in recent quarters had been propelled
by favorable currency exchange rates and lower fuel costs as
commodity prices have remained in a slump.
Royal Caribbean, whose brands also include Celebrity and other
lines as well as its namesake cruises, said bookings for 2016 are
roughly equal to record levels last year and at higher rates. The
company said it continues to see strong demand for its products in
North America, including the Caribbean, Alaska and Bermuda, which
comprise more than half of its capacity. Royal Caribbean expects
that this along with strong demand for Europe and Asia cruises will
more than offset pricing challenges in the Mediterranean, Australia
and Brazil.
Overall, Royal Caribbean reported a profit of $206.8 million, or
94 cents a share, up from $109.8 million, or 49 cents a share, a
year earlier. The company had expected adjusted per-share earnings
of 90 cents.
Write to Tess Stynes at tess.stynes@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
February 02, 2016 09:45 ET (14:45 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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