Royal Caribbean Is Buying a $1 Billion Stake in Silversea to Boost Its Luxury Offerings
Skift Take
Buying Silversea will certainly improve Royal Caribbean's offering in the luxury and expedition sectors. Will it be happy as a majority shareholder, as it says now, or will it eventually want complete control?
Royal Caribbean Cruises is buying a majority stake in the luxury Silversea Cruises for $1 billion, giving it a position in the top tier of the cruise industry for the first time.
The transaction, announced Thursday morning, will see the world's second largest cruise company take a 67 percent stake in Silversea, a nine-ship line based in Monaco.
“You can see how this crown jewel completes us,” said Richard Fain, chairman and CEO of Royal Caribbean Cruises. “Ultra-luxury and expedition cruises are gaps in our portfolio today. Both are projected to have strong demand growth, and both are vacation products used by our higher-yielding guests.”
In a call with analysts and media Thursday morning, Silversea Chairman Manfredi Lefebvre d’Ovidio, whose father founded the line, explained why he found the deal appealing.
“I was not thinking about partnering with anybody, but I did realize that myself and Richard shared a vision about the future of luxury,” he said. “And thus, Royal Caribbean became not just any partner. It was, in my mind, the only one.”
The deal valued Silversea at $2 billion, which includes $500 million of debt. It is expected to be completed later this year; though the company did not know exactly when. Royal Caribbean will consolidate Silversea’s financials into its earnings once the transaction is final.
Including $350 million in debt that Royal Caribbean assumed, the value of the transaction was $1.35 billion — which happens to be the cost of the newest ship in the company’s fleet, the 5,518-passenger Symphony of the Seas. Lefebvre will qualify for additional payment of 472,000 shares, v
