Carnival Corporation (NYSE:CCL) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Carnival Corporation (NYSE:CCL) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the thirty ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, twenty have issued a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $34.8696.

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on CCL shares. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Carnival from $34.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Barclays lowered their price target on Carnival from $37.00 to $36.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Carnival in a research report on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Carnival in a research report on Friday, December 26th. Finally, Tigress Financial upped their target price on Carnival from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 15th.

Carnival Stock Down 1.7%

NYSE:CCL opened at $28.94 on Friday. Carnival has a twelve month low of $15.07 and a twelve month high of $32.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 2.51. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $28.35 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $29.22.

Carnival (NYSE:CCL) last issued its earnings results on Friday, December 19th. The company reported $0.23 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by ($0.02). Carnival had a net margin of 10.37% and a return on equity of 28.39%. The company had revenue of $6.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.38 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.14 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. Carnival has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.170-0.170 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 2.480-2.48 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Carnival will post 1.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Carnival Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 13th will be given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 13th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Carnival

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CCL. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Carnival by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 127,764,837 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,693,681,000 after purchasing an additional 1,101,344 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Carnival by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 47,369,740 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,369,459,000 after acquiring an additional 1,845,850 shares in the last quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC increased its stake in Carnival by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 36,109,629 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,043,929,000 after buying an additional 291,864 shares in the last quarter. Causeway Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Carnival by 9.6% in the 3rd quarter. Causeway Capital Management LLC now owns 31,912,001 shares of the company’s stock valued at $922,576,000 after purchasing an additional 2,783,927 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Carnival by 7.4% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 27,617,014 shares of the company’s stock valued at $773,398,000 after purchasing an additional 1,906,110 shares in the last quarter. 67.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Carnival

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.