Norwegian Cruise Line jumps after the WSJ reports that activist Elliott has built a more than 10% stake in the company
Norwegian Cruise Line rose as much as ~12% in premarket trading on Tuesday after The Wall Street Journal reported that Elliott Investment Management has built a more than 10% stake in the company and plans to push for a turnaround at the cruise operator.
Citing people familiar with the matter, the Journal detailed that the activist hedge fund aims to engage with the company to “try to help fix its underperformance” and “make changes to catch up to its rivals.” Per the report, Elliott also privately approached Adam Goldstein, the former president and COO of competitor Royal Caribbean — a company that Elliott sees as having been successfully improving its financial performance and guest experience — as a potential board member nominee for the company.
Indeed, NCLH has seen its stock drop more than 20% in the past year, lagging behind rivals like Royal Caribbean, which is projecting strong demand for the full year driven by affluent customer demand.
Last Thursday, Norwegian appointed former Subway CEO John Chidsey as its new chief executive. Shares fell more than 7% on Friday after the late evening news.