Analyzing Carnival (NYSE:CUK) & AMC Entertainment (NYSE:AMC)

AMC Entertainment (NYSE:AMC) and Carnival (NYSE:CUK) are both consumer discretionary companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, analyst recommendations, dividends, risk, institutional ownership, profitability and valuation.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares AMC Entertainment and Carnival”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
AMC Entertainment	$4.64 billion	0.18	-$352.60 million	($1.41)	-1.15
Carnival	$26.62 billion	0.22	$2.76 billion	$2.00	15.38

Carnival has higher revenue and earnings than AMC Entertainment. AMC Entertainment is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Carnival, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility and Risk

AMC Entertainment has a beta of 0.72, indicating that its stock price is 28% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Carnival has a beta of 2.54, indicating that its stock price is 154% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations for AMC Entertainment and Carnival, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
AMC Entertainment	2	6	1	0	1.89
Carnival	0	1	0	0	2.00

AMC Entertainment presently has a consensus price target of $3.09, indicating a potential upside of 91.43%. Given AMC Entertainment’s higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe AMC Entertainment is more favorable than Carnival.

Profitability

This table compares AMC Entertainment and Carnival’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
AMC Entertainment	-13.16%	N/A	-5.27%
Carnival	10.37%	28.39%	6.09%

Institutional and Insider Ownership

28.8% of AMC Entertainment shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 23.8% of Carnival shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.4% of AMC Entertainment shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.1% of Carnival shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Carnival beats AMC Entertainment on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About AMC Entertainment

AMC Entertainment Holdings, Inc., through its subsidiaries, engages in the theatrical exhibition business. It owns, operates, or has interests in theatres in the United States and Europe. The company was founded in 1920 and is headquartered in Leawood, Kansas.

About Carnival

Carnival Plc operates as a global cruise and vacation company. The firm offers holiday and vacation products to a customer base that is broadly varied in terms of cultures, languages and leisure-time preferences. It operates through the North America and Australia (NAA), Europe and Asia (EA), Cruise Support, and Tour and Other segments. The NAA segment includes Carnival Cruise Line, Holland America Line, P and O Cruises (Australia), Princess and Seabourn. The EA segment includes AIDA, Costa, Cunard, and P and O Cruises (UK). The Cruise Support segment includes a portfolio of port destinations and other services, all of which are operated for the benefit of cruise brands. The Tour and Other segment represents the hotel and transportation operations of Holland America Princess Alaska Tours and other operations. The company was founded on July 19, 2000 and is headquartered in Southampton, the United Kingdom.