Educational information, not financial advice or a personal recommendation. Not regulated by the FCA. Do your own research. Capital at risk.

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. (NCLH)

Consumer Cyclical Out of favourS&P 500

Norwegian Cruise Line operates a fleet of ships offering holiday experiences across the globe, from the Caribbean to the Mediterranean.

$14.82

Is Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. a good stock for a UK beginner?

The honest version: There's no rating here and nothing for sale. In its favour: Strong brand recognition in the leisure travel market. Worth weighing: No dividend payments for shareholders.

No rating · no target price · nothing for sale here
Price-3.4%
= past earnings-report date
Priced in USD. As a UK investor your £ return also moves with the pound-to-dollar exchange rate, even inside an ISA - a stronger pound can trim your £ gains and a weaker pound can add to them, whatever the share price itself does.
52-week range-13% past year
$14.82
Low $14.53High $27.18
Where today's price sits versus its past year - context, not a signal.

Is this normal for this company?

Each figure against the range this same company has produced recently. Neither end of a range is the good end.

Price to earnings
6.8now
7.714.0

Share price divided by the earnings actually reported over the four most recent quarters. The range is the same calculation at each of this company's last few results, so roughly the past year.

Net profit margin
8.4%now
0.6%14.3%

Profit as a share of sales, from the company's own quarterly statements. The range covers the 5 quarters we hold, and the figure shown is its most recent one.

How these ranges are built

Every number here is the company's own reported figure, not a comparison with other companies. The ranges come from this company's own results and its share price. Where it reports in a different currency from the one its shares trade in, the price-to-earnings range is left out rather than mixing the two.

What does Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. do?

Norwegian Cruise Line makes its money by selling cruise holidays, including tickets, onboard dining, drinks, and excursions. As a travel business, it relies heavily on people having spare cash and the confidence to book holidays well in advance. How well they wrestle down their high debt levels while keeping their ships full of happy passengers is the thing to follow.

On our factor screen it looks strongest on value and growth, and weakest on income.

Quick checks
What's strong
  • Value screens high
What to watch
  • Momentum screens low
  • Income screens low

Does Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. pay a dividend?

No - Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. doesn't currently pay a dividend, so the whole return would rest on the share price. Plenty of growing companies reinvest their profits instead of paying them out - neither approach is better or worse, they're just different.

Does Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. have more cash or more debt?

It holds about $218.10M in cash against about $15.98B of debt - so it has net debt of about $15.76B. Debt is not automatically a problem - it funds growth - but it has to be serviced and repaid, which matters more when profits wobble.

From the latest reported balance sheet. Cash and debt levels change, and some borrowing is normal - this is context, not a judgment.

What do Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd.'s numbers mean?

P/E
11.33
This shows how much you are paying for every pound of the company's recent annual profit.
Lower than most of the 103 Consumer Cyclical shares we cover
Forward P/E
10.94
This is a measure of the price compared to what analysts expect the company to earn in the coming year.
Lower than most of the 122 Consumer Cyclical shares we cover
Beta
1.9
This indicates the share price tends to swing nearly twice as much as the wider stock market, making it a bumpier ride.
Gross margin
42.5%
This represents the percentage of revenue left over after paying for the direct costs of running the ships, like fuel and food.
Around the middle of the 122 Consumer Cyclical shares we cover

How has it performed?

Growth of £1,000, the worst fall, and year by year
If you had put $1,000 into Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd.
$966-3%

Over about 2 years to 2026-09-11. This is the share price only; any dividends would add to it. And it's the USD return - as a UK investor your actual £ return also moves with the exchange rate. Past performance is not a guide to the future, and it could just as easily have fallen.

How much has Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. actually fallen?

−50%

Over the last 2 years of daily prices, Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. fell as much as −50% from a high to a later low. Falls like this are normal when you own a share.

Past falls are not a forecast - it can fall further, or recover.

How has it done year by year?

2022-41%
2023+64%
2024+28%
2025-13%
2026 so far-16%

Calendar-year total return - the share price with dividends reinvested - from adjusted closing prices. The current year is only part-complete. Past returns are not a guide to the future.

A closer look at the numbers

Ownership, earnings history, where the money goes, and the outlook range
Market cap: The company's total value on the stock market - share price times the number of shares. Big = 'large-cap', small = 'small-cap'.
$8.59B
Avg volume: How many shares change hands on a typical day. Higher means it's easy to buy or exit without moving the price.
18.51M
Day range: The lowest and highest price the shares traded at during the latest day.
$14.70 – $15.03
52-week range: The lowest and highest the shares have traded over the past year - a sense of how wide the swings have been.
$14.53 – $27.18
P/E ratio: Price-to-earnings: the share price divided by yearly profit per share. Lower can mean cheaper; higher often means investors expect fast growth.
11.3
Beta: How bumpy the share price is versus the whole market. Above 1 swings more than the market; below 1 is calmer. It's about the ride, not whether it goes up or down.
1.90

Does the share price tell you if it's cheap or expensive?

One share costs$14.82
Number of shares579 million
So the whole company is worth$8.59bn
A £5 share is not cheaper than a £500 one - it means the company cut itself into more slices. Whether the total looks high or low is what the figures below are for; we don't give a verdict.

Who owns Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd.?

Big institutions 99%Company insiders 1%Public & smaller investors 1%

About 99% of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd., or about 99 in every 100 shares, is held by big institutions such as pension and index funds, and company insiders hold about 1%. The rest, roughly 1%, is held by the public and smaller investors.

What this does and doesn't tell you

This is a recent snapshot of the share register, and it moves. We don't read anything into who owns what - a high institutional share is common for any large listed company and is not a signal about it.

How bumpy is it?Beta: How bumpy the share price is versus the whole market. Above 1 swings more than the market; below 1 is calmer. It's about the ride, not whether it goes up or down. 1.90
Calm
Wild
Bumpier than the market

Based on beta - how much the price swings versus the whole market. Bumpier isn't bad; it just means a rougher ride, which matters more the sooner you might need the money.

Why has it been moving?▼ -2% past week · ▼ -13% past year

Prices move on results, news and the mood of the whole market - no single headline explains a day, and a quiet week is usually just noise, not a signal.

How much money does Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. make?

Revenue and profit by quarter, and how much of each sale turns into profit.

RevenueNet income
$0$734.54M$1.47B$2.20B$2.94BQ2 25Q3 25Q4 25Q1 26Q2 26
Gross margin
42.5%
Net margin
7.5%
Return on equity
36.7%

Where does each £100 of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd.'s sales go?

Making the product or service £58Running costs, tax and interest £35Left as profit £7

A rough split of the latest full-year figures: of every £100 of sales, about £58 covers making the product or service, £35 goes on running costs, tax and interest, and about £7 is left as profit. Margins vary a lot by industry, and one-off items can distort a single year.

When does Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. report earnings, and how did recent quarters go?

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. is next scheduled to report on about 2026-11-04 - dates can move, and we don't predict results; this just tells you when to look.

‘Beat’ and ‘missed’ are against what analysts expected, not whether the business is doing well.

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd.: reported versus expected earnings per share, recent quarters
ReportedExpected EPS: The earnings per share analysts expected for the quarter - the average of their forecasts. 'Beating' or 'missing' is measured against this number.Actual EPSvs expected
2026-07-30$0.39$0.48Beat +23%
2026-05-04$0.14$0.23Beat +61%
2026-03-02$0.27$0.28Beat +6%
2025-11-04$1.16$1.20Beat +3%
2025-07-31$0.52$0.51Missed -1%
2025-04-30$0.09$0.07Missed -23%

Across the last 6 quarters here, Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. came in ahead of what analysts expected 4 times. One quarter is noise, not a trend.

See who else reports over the next two weeks →

Where these figures come from

Each quarter a company reports its results against a consensus of analyst forecasts. The figures here are reported versus expected earnings per share from published results; the expectation is that analyst consensus, not our view. Report dates are estimates and can move.

What are the scenarios for Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd.?

An illustrative range for the year ahead — not a prediction or a price target.

◀ lowerhigher ▶todayBull▲ UpsideBase• In-lineBear▼ Downside
Bull
+10% to +15%Strong summer booking demand
Base
-5% to +5%Steady seasonal travel patterns
Bear
-10% to -20%Unexpected rise in fuel costs

What are the pros, cons and common questions?

The case each way, and the questions people ask
The bull case

Consistent profit margin growth

The bear case

Long-term shift in holiday preferences

What are the pros and cons of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd.?

3bull points
6bear points

A balance check, not a score or verdict.

The bull case3
  • Strong brand recognition in the leisure travel market
  • High gross margins suggest efficient core operations
  • Significant return on equity: How much profit the company makes for each £1 shareholders have put in. Higher usually means a more efficient business. indicates effective use of shareholder capital
The catch3
  • No dividend payments for shareholders
  • High sensitivity to economic downturns
  • Significant debt levels from past operations
Key risks3
  • Rising fuel prices directly impact profitability
  • Geopolitical instability can disrupt cruise routes
  • High beta means the share price can be very volatile
What would flip the thesis

The write-up's own warning lights — if these start happening, the case above changes.

  • A sustained drop in global consumer spending on travel
  • A major change in environmental regulations increasing operating costs

Common questions about Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd.

Does Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. pay a dividend?

No - Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. does not currently pay a dividend, so the return would rest on the share price. Many growing companies reinvest profits instead of paying them out.

When does Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. report earnings next?

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. is next scheduled to report results on about 2026-11-04. Report dates are estimates and can move; this is a diary note for when to look, not a forecast of the outcome.

More in Consumer Cyclical

General Motors CompanyGenuine Parts CompanyDomino's Pizza, Inc.Tractor Supply CompanyUlta Beauty, Inc.Smurfit Westrock PlcThe Home Depot, Inc.lululemon athletica inc.
Confidence: medium · data: USD · flags: none · Charts by TradingView Lightweight Charts™
Found this useful? The Almanac is free and ad-free - a coffee keeps it that way.Support →

Built from public filings & market prices, checked for an education-only tone, and never a price target. How we make these →

This plain-English summary was auto-generated on 2026-08-02 from public data and checked for an education-only, no-advice tone (the figures above carry their own, usually fresher, 'as of' date). It's information, never a recommendation.

Prices as of 11 Sep 2026; other figures as of 11 Aug 2026. Prices may be delayed and numbers can go stale - always double-check before acting.