Carnival (NYSE:CCL) Raised to “Strong-Buy” at Freedom Capital

Carnival (NYSE:CCL) was upgraded by analysts at Freedom Capital to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other analysts have also recently issued reports on CCL. Mizuho upped their price objective on Carnival from $38.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, March 27th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on Carnival from $40.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. Zacks Research upgraded Carnival from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on Carnival from $30.00 to $29.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Carnival in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Carnival has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $34.80.

Carnival Stock Up 2.6%

Shares of CCL opened at $27.87 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 2.32. Carnival has a 1 year low of $22.11 and a 1 year high of $34.03. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $26.56 and its 200-day simple moving average is $28.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82, a current ratio of 0.30 and a quick ratio of 0.26.

Carnival (NYSE:CCL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, March 27th. The company reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $6.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.13 billion. Carnival had a return on equity of 26.92% and a net margin of 11.48%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.13 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Carnival will post 2.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Carnival news, Director Sir Jonathon Band sold 11,988 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.19, for a total value of $313,965.72. Following the sale, the director owned 52,601 shares in the company, valued at $1,377,620.19. This trade represents a 18.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Bettina Alejandra Deynes sold 43,058 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.10, for a total value of $1,209,929.80. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 69,238 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,945,587.80. The trade was a 38.34% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 55,058 shares of company stock worth $1,524,195. Insiders own 7.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Carnival

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Carnival by 5.1% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 112,167 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,191,000 after buying an additional 5,435 shares during the period. Great Lakes Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Carnival during the first quarter valued at $228,000. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in shares of Carnival by 61.6% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 30,437 shares of the company’s stock valued at $594,000 after buying an additional 11,601 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP increased its stake in shares of Carnival by 41.9% during the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 88,522 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,729,000 after buying an additional 26,141 shares during the period. Finally, Baird Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Carnival by 57.0% during the second quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 64,720 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,820,000 after buying an additional 23,484 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.19% of the company’s stock.

Carnival Company Profile

Carnival Corporation (NYSE: CCL) is a global cruise operator that provides leisure travel services through a portfolio of passenger cruise brands. The company’s core business is operating cruise ships that offer multi-night voyages and associated vacation services, including onboard accommodations, dining, entertainment, spa and wellness offerings, casinos, youth programs, and organized shore excursions. Carnival markets cruise vacations to a broad range of consumers, from value-focused travelers to premium and luxury segments, through differentiated brand positioning and onboard experiences.

Its operating structure comprises multiple well-known cruise brands that target distinct geographic and demographic markets.