We recently compiled a list of the 7 High Growth Travel Services Stocks For 2025. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd (NYSE:RCL) stands against the other high growth travel services stocks.
The COVID-19 pandemic dealt a severe blow to both cruise and air travel industries. The mere thought of traveling in a closed compartment with people from all over the world scared travelers. Hospitality businesses like hotels and restaurants were less affected but still felt the heat.
Over the last year, the air travel industry has recovered to the pre-pandemic levels. Cruise passengers have grown in numbers for the second successive year in 2024, and are likely to post a record in 2025 as well.
On the back of this recovery, travel services stocks have performed well and are likely to continue performing well in the future. We looked at the top 7 travel services stocks by screening them based on sales growth since the pandemic.
To come up with the list of high-growth travel services stocks, we only considered stocks with a market cap of at least $10 billion and a 5-year sales growth rate of over 20%.
An aerial view of a luxurious cruise ship, surrounded by the blue horizon.
Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd (NYSE:RCL)
Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd is a cruise company that operates under different brands including Celebrity Cruises, Royal Caribbean International, and Silversea Cruises. The company’s stock was JP Morgan’s favorite pick for 2025 as the investment bank chose RCL in its list of 12 stocks from the consumer space. RCL was given a price target of $253, which the stock hit in the first month of the year after a stellar earnings report.
RCL was able to beat analyst estimates for its Q4 EPS backed by strong bookings demand and the ability to raise prices without losing customers. The earnings report sets the tone for a great year ahead. CEO Jason Liberty is optimistic of a staggering growth in profitability in the year ahead:
2025 is shaping up to be another great year, with expected adjusted earnings growth of 23%, as our commercial and vacation experiences flywheel continues to accelerate the growing preference for our leading brands, the most innovative ships, and world-class private destinations
In addition to the increasing demand, customers are now willing to spend more when on an RCL cruise, helping the company further monetize its existing customers. The firm’s premium offering ‘Celebrity River Cruises’ is also set to start taking bookings this year with an expected launch in 2027.
Overall RCL ranks 2nd on our list of the high growth travel services stocks for 2025. While we acknowledge the potential of RCL as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is as promising as RCL but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
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Disclosure: None. This article was originally published at Insider Monkey.