Stifel Nicolaus Raises Norwegian Cruise Line (NYSE:NCLH) Price Target to $27.00

Norwegian Cruise Line (NYSE:NCLH) had its price objective raised by Stifel Nicolaus from $26.00 to $27.00 in a research report released on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a buy rating on the stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on the company. Susquehanna decreased their price target on Norwegian Cruise Line from $21.00 to $18.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Norwegian Cruise Line from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Mizuho raised shares of Norwegian Cruise Line from a neutral rating to a buy rating and raised their target price for the stock from $21.00 to $24.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 28th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Norwegian Cruise Line from $21.00 to $20.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Norwegian Cruise Line from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $22.18.

Norwegian Cruise Line Price Performance

NCLH stock traded down $0.60 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $15.33. 19,807,713 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 13,053,395. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $18.04 and its 200 day moving average is $18.02. Norwegian Cruise Line has a 12-month low of $12.70 and a 12-month high of $21.73. The company has a market cap of $6.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 2.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 17.19, a current ratio of 0.24 and a quick ratio of 0.22.

Norwegian Cruise Line (NYSE:NCLH) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $0.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $2.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.38 billion. Norwegian Cruise Line had a return on equity of 105.44% and a net margin of 4.62%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.20 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Norwegian Cruise Line will post 1.17 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norwegian Cruise Line

In other news, Director Zillah Byng-Thorne purchased 13,360 shares of Norwegian Cruise Line stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 31st. The stock was bought at an average price of $16.50 per share, with a total value of $220,440.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 13,360 shares in the company, valued at approximately $220,440. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.87% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Norwegian Cruise Line

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its holdings in Norwegian Cruise Line by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 119,165 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,239,000 after acquiring an additional 2,248 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Norwegian Cruise Line by 18.6% during the 2nd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,787,660 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,590,000 after buying an additional 280,654 shares during the period. First Dallas Securities Inc. raised its holdings in Norwegian Cruise Line by 57.9% during the 2nd quarter. First Dallas Securities Inc. now owns 55,450 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,042,000 after buying an additional 20,340 shares during the period. Range Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Norwegian Cruise Line in the 2nd quarter valued at about $558,000. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of Norwegian Cruise Line by 5.9% in the 2nd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 80,919 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,520,000 after purchasing an additional 4,500 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.58% of the company’s stock.

About Norwegian Cruise Line

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a cruise company in North America, Europe, the Asia-Pacific, and internationally. The company operates through the Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises, and Regent Seven Seas Cruises brands. It offers itineraries ranging from three days to a 180-days calling on various ports, including Scandinavia, Northern Europe, the Mediterranean, the Greek Isles, Alaska, Canada and New England, Hawaii, Asia, Tahiti and the South Pacific, Australia and New Zealand, Africa, India, South America, the Panama Canal, and the Caribbean.