Norwegian to sell $500 million notes to pay down debt; forecasts net loss

By Liz Moyer

Investing.com -- Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd's (NYSE:NCLH) NCL Corp. subsidiary said it would record a net loss for the quarter ending in December and for the full year 2022 and it plans to sell $500 million in notes to repay some of its outstanding debt.

It also expects to report a net loss for the first quarter of 2023.

The cruise operator said in a Security and Exchange Commission filing that its preliminary estimate sees total revenue of $4.7 billion to $5B for the year ended in December. That compares with revenue of $648M for the 2021 year, when cruise operators were just trying to come back after pandemic-related shutdowns.

The filing said that as of Dec. 31, 2022, its cumulative booked position was approximately 62% for the full year 2023 at higher prices than 2019 at a similar point in time. It also said it is seeing “strong and broad-based onboard revenue generation” as occupancy increases.

Norwegian shares fell 4.6% on Thursday. Shares of other cruise operators were also falling, including Carnival Corporation (NYSE:CCL), down 3.2%, and Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd (NYSE:RCL), down 2.4%.

Norwegian said it has cash and cash equivalents of $1B and a $1B undrawn commitment minus related fees as of the end of 2022 compared with cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments of $1.7B and a $1B undrawn commitment at the end of 2021.

“We continue to prioritize enhancing liquidity and financial flexibility in the current environment while seeking opportunities to optimize our balance sheet,” the company said in the filing.