News

Norwegian’s principal shareholders to cut stake in company by offering 20 million shares

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines; Published: 08 August 2013 08 August 2013

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd says it has announced the launch of a secondary public offering of 20 million of its ordinary shares by its principal shareholders, Star NCLC Holdings Ltd. and certain funds affiliated with Apollo Global Management, LLC and TPG Global, LLC pursuant to a registration statement filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

The selling shareholders will grant the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase an aggregate of up to 3 million additional ordinary shares. Norwegian will not sell any ordinary shares in the offering and will not receive any of the proceeds from the offering.

UBS Investment Bank and Barclays are acting as bookrunners and the representatives of the underwriters for the offering. Citigroup, Deutsche Bank Securities, Goldman, Sachs & Co. and J.P. Morgan are also acting as bookrunners for the offering. Credit Agricole CIB, DNB Markets, HSBC, SunTrust Robinson Humphrey and Nomura are acting as co-managers for the offering, the company said in a statement.

Hapag-Lloyd Kreuzfahrten more than doubles TUI AG cruise losses

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines; Published: 08 August 2013 08 August 2013

Poor performance of its Hapag-Lloyd Kreuzfahrten unit has more than doubled the operating losses of cruise operations of TUI AG, the German travel group in nine months to 30 June, offsetting continuing good development of TUI Cruises.

Turnover in TUI AG’s cruise sector rose to €188 million from €162 million year on. “This growth was mainly driven by the expansion of the fleet to include MS Europa 2 (since May 2013), TUI AG said.

However, operating loss of the sector deepened to €18 million euros from €8 million in the corresponding period a yearearlier.

“The decline was exclusively attributable to the weaker performance of Hapag-Lloyd Kreuzfahrten. Earnings were impacted by start-up costs for the fleet expansion and damage resulting from a fire during a dry dock period,” TUI AG said in a statement.

Hapag-Lloyd Kreuzfahrten recorded a decline in occupancy of 4.6 percentage points to around 71% The average rate per passenger per day climbed by around 8% from €377 to €409. Hapag-Lloyd Kreuzfahrten operates in the luxury and exploration segments of the cruise industry.

In the period under review, TUI Cruises continued its positive development. “TUI Cruises achieved an increase in occupancy of 1 percentage point to 100%. The average rate per passenger per day grew by around 3% from €142 to €147, TUI AG said.

TUI Cruises is a premium market cruise operator, in which TUI AG has a 50% stake, while Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd owns the other 50%.

NYK cuts cruise losses, forecasts return to profit in current financial year

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines; Published: 07 August 2013 07 August 2013

Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK), the Japanese shipping giant that owns NYK Cruises in Japan and Crystal Cruises in Los Angeles, has reduced losses from its cruise operations in the financial year to 31 March 2013and forecasts return to profit in 2014.

The cruise operations produced a recurring loss of JPY3.7 billion in the review period, a reduction from a JPY5.8 billion loss year on. Revenues increased to JPY35.0 billion from JPY32.4 billion, NYK said in its annual report.

NYK is forecasting a profit of JPY1.0 billion on revenues of JPY43.0 billion for the 2014 financial year that started on 1 April, it said in the report.

“In the North American market, Crystal Cruises sales of Mediterranean voyages declined as a result of turmoil in Southern Europe stemming from financial instability as well as political tension in the Middle East and North Africa,” NYK said.

“In the Japanese market, Asuka Cruises business rebounded strongly from the previous fiscal year, when the Great East Japan Earthquake severely impacted results. Overall, the cruises segment narrowed its loss on higher revenues compared with the previous fiscal year,” NYK pointed out.