Norwegian Cruise Line Insiders Bought Stock in Post-Earnings Slump

Shares of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings fell 15% after the cruise operator’s third-quarter earnings report. (MARTIN BERNETTI/AFP via Getty Images)

Key Points

• Three Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings executives purchased company stock after a sharp decline following a disappointing earnings report.
• CEO Harry Sommer acquired 25,000 shares at an average of $18.52, increasing his direct holdings to 720,728 shares.
• Norwegian Cruise Line’s stock fell 15% after the company’s revenue fell short of estimates and management lowered its forecast of net yield for the full year.

Three top executives of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings bought the stock when it fell sharply following the company’s third-quarter earnings report this past week, securities filings show.

A Form 4 filed Thursday with the Securities and Exchange Commission shows President and CEO Harry Sommer bought 25,000 shares for an average price of $18.52 each that day. The purchase brought his direct holdings to 720,728 shares, which were valued at $13.7 million based on Friday’s closing price of $19.07.

The same day, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Mark Kempa snapped up 10,635 shares for $18.53 each. Following the transaction, Kempa directly owned 369,352 shares worth more than $7 million.

A separate SEC filing shows Jason Montague, the cruise line’s chief luxury officer, made his own purchase of 13,400 shares for roughly $18.81 each on Thursday. Those shares are owned indirectly through a trust, and come in addition to 52,391 shares Montague holds directly.

Norwegian Cruise Line didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

The cruise operator posted third-quarter earnings on Tuesday. In addition to missing analysts’ estimates for revenue, Norwegian lowered its full-year outlook for net yield, a metric described as “the most relevant measure of our pricing performance.”

Shares sold off sharply following the report, ending the session down 15%. They continued to slide and closed at $18.24 on Thursday, the day of the purchases, before ending Friday’s session up 4.5%.

Norwegian stock is down 26% for the year, lagging behind peers Carnival and Royal Caribbean Group , which have risen 7.3% and 11%, respectively. The peer group has trailed behind the market this year, with the benchmark S&P 500 up 14% through Friday’s close.

Inside Scoop is a regular Barron’s feature covering stock transactions by corporate executives and board members—so-called insiders—as well as large shareholders, politicians, and other prominent figures. Due to their insider status, these investors are required to disclose stock trades with the Securities and Exchange Commission or other regulatory groups.

Write to Mackenzie Tatananni at mackenzie.tatananni@barrons.com