Royal Caribbean CEO Flags Historic Booking Momentum Heading Into 2026

In the fourth-quarter earnings call, Liberty stated that recent demand trends show continued strength across pricing and occupancy.

• CEO Jason Liberty said the company is nearly two-thirds booked for the full year in 2026 at historically healthy load factors and pricing. 
• The cruise operator reported a Q4 revenue of $4.259 billion and earnings per share (EPS) of $2.80.
• Following earnings, Royal Caribbean stock traded over 15% higher. 

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE: RCL) CEO Jason Liberty said the company is heading into 2026 with strong momentum after reporting record booking trends and growing confidence in its technology-driven strategy.

In the fourth-quarter earnings call, Liberty stated that recent demand trends show continued strength across pricing and occupancy, underscoring a rebound in consumer travel spending despite broader economic uncertainty.

Record Booking Momentum

Liberty said demand picked up sharply following its third-quarter (Q3) earnings update, delivering the strongest seven-week booking stretch in its history. These results place the cruise line nearly two-thirds booked for the full year in 2026 at historically healthy load factors and pricing. 

“Our momentum continues into 2026. The wave is off to a record start. We experienced the best seven booking weeks in the company's history since the last earnings call.”

-Jason Liberty, CEO, Royal Caribbean Cruises

Following the Q4 earnings, RCL stock traded over 15% higher on Thursday mid-morning. On Stocktwits, retail sentiment around the stock jumped to ‘extremely bullish’ from ‘neutral’ territory the previous day. Message volume changed to ‘high’ from ‘normal’ levels in 24 hours. 

Q4 Financial Performance And Outlook

The cruise operator reported a Q4 revenue of $4.259 billion and earnings per share (EPS) of $2.80. While revenue came in slightly below the analysts’ consensus estimate of $4.273 billion, adjusted EPS met the consensus estimate of $2.8, according to Fiscal AI data. 

"We're very pleased by the strength we're seeing across our portfolio as consumers continue to prioritize our vacation experiences," said Naftali Holtz, CFO, Royal Caribbean Group.

For the first-quarter FY2026, the company expects net yields to increase between 2.4% and 2.9% and adjusted EPS to be in the range of $3.18 to $3.28. For the fiscal year 2026, Royal Caribbean sees net yields to increase between 2.1% and 4.1% with an adjusted EPS in the range of $17.70 to $18.10, representing a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 23% over the first two years of Perfecta.

Perfecta is the company’s long-term financial plan focused on growing earnings by about 20% per year between 2024 and 2027.

RCL stock has gained over 23% in the last 12 months. 

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