Wednesday, February 10, 2010
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Letters | Opinion | Editorial | Weekend Report |
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Cruise controls spending - profits surge By Scott Armstrong ~ Guardian Business Editor ~ scott@nasguard.com: Things are looking good for yet another cruise line serving The Bahamas, as Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. revealed that its fourth-quarter profit more than doubled as it reined in expenses while continuing to woo budget-conscious travelers. The company operates five vessels cruising to The Bahamas, including two out of Miami - the Majesty of the Seas and the Liberty of the Seas, one out of Baltimore - the Enchantment of the Seas, one out of New Jersey - the Explorer of the Seas, and one out of Florida - the Monarch of the Seas. People are still going on vacation during the recession, but they're typically taking shorter trips and spending less on food, drinks and other discretionary purchases. But the Miami company, which had warned its traditionally slow fourth quarter would be worse than usual, handily beat Wall Street estimates. Its shares rose in pre-market trading, though it reporter less rosy results for the full year. For the three months that ended December 31, the owner of Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises and Pullmantur earned $3.4 million, or 2 cents per share. That's more than double its profit a year earlier, when it earned $1.5 million, or a penny per share. Revenue was nearly steady at $1.45 billion for the quarter, down from $1.46 billion last year. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expected Royal Caribbean to lose 6 cents per share on revenue of $1.44 billion. "Good cost discipline and better than expected revenues have enabled us to end 2009 on a decidedly upbeat note," Chairman and CEO Richard D. Fain said in a statement. For the full year, its profit plummeted almost 72 percent to $162.4 million, or 75 cents per share. That's down from a 2008 profit of $573.7 million, or $2.68 per share. Full-year revenue fell 10 percent to $5.89 billion from $6.53 billion. Royal Caribbean shares climbed $1.08, or 4.3 percent, to $26.41 before the market opened. They closed Wednesday at $25.43.
Friday January 29, 2010 |
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