Royal Olympic Cruises (ROC) has reported net income of $4.5 million, or $0.36 per share, on revenues of $125.8 million for its fiscal year ended Nov. 30, 1998, compared to net income of $7.7 million on revenues of $112.8 million for fiscal year 1997.
For its fourth quarter, ROC reported net income of $0.1 million, or $0.01 per share, on revenues of $33 million, compared to net income of $4.6 million, or $0.59 per share, on revenues of $33.0 million for the same period in 1997.
According to ROC, 1998 results fell well below budget and expectations. The company attributed several non-recurring factors to the results including the collision of the Odvsseus in Buenos Aires and boiler damage aboard the Apollon, which resulted in 30 days’ net loss of revenue.
In addition, the Iraqi crisis led to decreased bookings and lower performance for the Stella Solaris as did the cancellation of the line’s Egyptian cruise program which led to overcapacity in the third and fourth quarters.
For fiscal year 1998, ROC increased berth capacity by 25.3 percent to 1,057,068 as a result of a fleet increase from six to nine ships. Passenger cruise days increased by 20.8 percent for the year, while the load factor fell by 3.6 percent to 77.5 percent as a result of increased capacity, and the average per diem fell by 7.3 percent due to strong competition, according to a prepared statement.
For the first quarter of 1999, ROC stated that passenger per diems were not up to expectations for the Stella Solaris’ transatlantic Christmas cruise and Amazon River cruises due to the higher than expected absorption of lower-revenue passengers from the cancelled Olympic Countess program and the higher air costs of the Stella Solaris program.
Early bookings for passengers out of the U.S. were also said to be below expectations.
ROC Chairman Gordon Parham said that “the company continues to build a sound base for the development of long-term shareholder value by making significant commitments in both personnel and systems.”
Parham said that management policy is to carefully match the line’s capacity to the seasonal variable demand and thus increase occupancy levels to 80 percent or more, and at the same time decrease operating expenses.
