Carnival Co. & (NYSE:CCL) Posts Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.04 EPS

Carnival Co. & (NYSE:CCL) released its earnings results on Wednesday. The company reported ($0.14) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.18) by $0.04, Briefing.com reports. Carnival Co. & had a return on equity of 7.75% and a net margin of 1.79%. The business had revenue of $5.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.42 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($0.55) earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.0% compared to the same quarter last year.

Carnival Co. & Stock Performance

NYSE:CCL opened at $16.34 on Friday. Carnival Co. & has a 1-year low of $8.70 and a 1-year high of $19.74. The stock has a market cap of $18.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 62.85 and a beta of 2.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.27, a current ratio of 0.36 and a quick ratio of 0.41. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $16.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $15.34.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CCL has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Mizuho began coverage on Carnival Co. & in a research note on Tuesday. They set a “buy” rating and a $21.00 target price for the company. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Carnival Co. & from $19.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 20th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Carnival Co. & from $26.00 to $25.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Carnival Co. & from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Macquarie increased their price objective on shares of Carnival Co. & from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $21.42.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Carnival Co. & news, CFO David Bernstein sold 153,995 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.37, for a total transaction of $2,366,903.15. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 181,981 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,797,047.97. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 11.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CCL. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in Carnival Co. & by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,345,937 shares of the company’s stock worth $24,955,000 after purchasing an additional 5,470 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio raised its position in shares of Carnival Co. & by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 416,375 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,720,000 after buying an additional 11,376 shares in the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV raised its holdings in Carnival Co. & by 441.2% during the fourth quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 168,987 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,133,000 after purchasing an additional 137,765 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in Carnival Co. & by 19.2% in the fourth quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 5,945,373 shares of the company’s stock worth $110,228,000 after purchasing an additional 958,017 shares during the period. Finally, Wexford Capital LP acquired a new position in shares of Carnival Co. & during the 4th quarter valued at $609,000. 67.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Carnival Co. & Company Profile

Carnival Corporation & plc engages in the provision of leisure travel services in North America, Australia, Europe, Asia, and internationally. The company operates through four segments: NAA Cruise Operations, Europe Cruise Operations, Cruise Support, and Tour and Other. It operates port destinations, private islands, and a solar park, as well as owns and operates hotels, lodges, glass-domed railcars, and motor coaches.