Hilton Worldwide vs Norwegian Cruise Line
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KIRA’s take AI analyst
I put Hilton Worldwide and Norwegian Cruise Line side by side, using each one’s latest annual report. Here is what stands out:
- Hilton Worldwide is the larger business, with $12.0B of revenue in fiscal 2025 against $9.8B for Norwegian Cruise Line.
- Hilton Worldwide grew revenue faster (7.7%, against 3.7%).
- Hilton Worldwide kept more of each dollar of sales as operating profit (22.4% operating margin, against 15.9%).
- Hilton Worldwide turned more of its sales into free cash flow (16.9% FCF margin, against −11.9%).
- Hilton Worldwide earned a higher return on the capital invested in it (31.1%, against 9.8%).
- Investors pay more for each dollar of Hilton Worldwide’s earnings: a P/E of 51.6x against 9.4x for Norwegian Cruise Line.
Who comes out ahead
Of the 9 measures where higher (or lower) is clearly better, how many each company leads.
Hilton Worldwide
HLT
6/9
Revenue growthOperating marginNet marginFCF marginReturn on capitalNet debt / EBITDA
Norwegian Cruise Line
NCLH
3/9
5-year growthPiotroski F-scoreShare count change
Side by side
Best in the row
| Latest fiscal year | HLT FY25 | NCLH FY25 |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| Market cap | $80.6B | $7.1B |
| Revenue | $12.0B | $9.8B |
| Free cash flow | $2.0B | −$1.2B |
| Net income | $1.5B | $423M |
| Growth | ||
| Revenue growth | 7.7% | 3.7% |
| 5-year growth | 22.8% | 50.3% |
| Share count change | −4.8% | −7.2% |
| Profitability | ||
| Gross margin | — | 42.6% |
| Operating margin | 22.4% | 15.9% |
| Net margin | 12.1% | 4.3% |
| FCF margin | 16.9% | −11.9% |
| Return on capital | 31.1% | 9.8% |
| Return on equity | — | 23.3% |
| Balance sheet | ||
| Net debt | $11.4B | $14.8B |
| Net debt / EBITDA | 4.0x | 5.4x |
| Dividends and buybacks | $3.3B | $0.0M |
| Valuation & quality | ||
| P/E | 51.6x | 9.4x |
| Piotroski F-score | 5 | 7 |
Ten years
Revenue
Operating margin
Free cash flow
Return on capital
Each company's latest fiscal year; fiscal years end in different months. The best value in each row is highlighted where higher (or lower) is clearly better. Not investment advice.