VenkatP
Physician, Growth & Value Stock Investor
Viking is a safe investment, much like its river ships, which sail calmer waters than ships on rough seas. It just took delivery of the Viking Ptah, purpose-built for the Nile, and per the company its committed orderbook calls for 20 more river ships by 2028, plus nine ocean and two expedition ships by 2031. x.comÂ
Cruise demand remains strong despite recession concerns. Royal Caribbean beat Q3 EPS expectations at $6.57 versus $6.38, grew revenue 9%, raised guidance and reported surging 2027 bookings; Viking and Carnival are also named in the cruise-operator view. x.comÂ
Booking Holdings is a great business at a nice discount and one of the best ways to play an end to the war and the reopening of the Middle East, as @vijaythirumalai argues. It is a best-in-class asset-light travel business trading at about 16x earnings with roughly 15% EPS growth and a near-10% free cash flow yield, with limited AI disruption risk, unlike Uber with autonomy. The war has created some overhang. Lower prices would be even better for the long term. x.comÂ
