Cruise operators under pressure after BofA warns of lower June pricing

Shares of Carnival Corporation (NYSE:CCL), Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL), Viking Holdings (NYSE:VIK), and Norwegian Cruise Line (NYSE:NCLH) are all in negative territory after BofA Securities issued a warning that pricing in early June was lower compared to the same time frame last month.

On a month-to-month basis, 40% of cruise itineraries had softer pricing compared to 33% in May, but below the 60% in early March, while only 32% of itineraries had positive pricing growth versus 43% in early May.

According to BofA analyst Andrew Didora, pricing for Alaskan cruises outperformed while Europe and the Mediterranean was down by low single-digits.

Eastern Caribbean cruises also saw the greatest sequential acceleration in June, outperforming Western Caribbean cruises for the first time since December and the first sequential acceleration (+2%) since February.

Viking (VIK) cruises outperformed its peers given the lower price volatility. In June, 59% of Viking (VIK) cruise prices were flat, while 26% decelerated sequentially and 15% accelerated.

Carnival (CCL) shares are down more than 7%, Royal Caribbean (RCL) shares are down 5%, Norwegian Cruise Lines (NCLH) shares are down nearly 8%, and Viking Holdings (VIK) are down 3.5%.