Royal Caribbean's stock bounces slightly while swinging to wider-than-expected loss
Shares of Royal Caribbean Group bounced 0.2% in premarket trading Thursday, after plunging 17.6% over the past three sessions, although the cruise operator swung to a wider-than-expected loss, as the most operations remained suspended as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The company reported a net loss of $1.35 billion, or $6.29 a share, after net income of $883.2 million, or $4.20 a share, in the year-ago period. Excluding non-recurring items, the company swung to an adjusted loss per share of $5.62 from EPS of $4.27, missing the FactSet loss consensus of $5.12. Passenger ticket revenue plunged to $3.2 million from $2.34 billion, missing the FactSet consensus of $10.9 million. Total revenue was negative $33.7 million after positive $3.19 billion, as onboard and other revenue swung to negative $36.9 million from positive $842.1 million. The company had liquidity of $3.7 billion as of Sept. 30, and said it raised $1.15 billion in additional liquidity in October. Royal continues to estimate monthly cash burn of $250 million to $290 million during a prolonged suspension of operations. "The Company continues to work with government and health authorities across the globe to address the unique public health challenges posed by COVID-19 and expects to re-start its global cruise operation in a phased manner," the company said in a statement. The company said booked sailings for the second half of 2021 are within historical ranges, while prices are down slightly. The stock has tumbled 60.2% year to date through Wednesday, while the S&P 500 has gained 1.3%.
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