Head-To-Head Review: Lucky Strike Entertainment (NYSE:LUCK) vs. Carnival (NYSE:CCL)

Carnival (NYSE:CCL) and Lucky Strike Entertainment (NYSE:LUCK) are both consumer discretionary companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, risk, analyst recommendations, dividends, earnings, profitability and institutional ownership.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Carnival and Lucky Strike Entertainment”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Carnival	$26.62 billion	1.19	$2.76 billion	$2.25	11.40
Lucky Strike Entertainment	$1.20 billion	0.99	-$10.02 million	($0.65)	-13.25

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

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and target prices for Carnival and Lucky Strike Entertainment, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Carnival	0	6	21	0	2.78
Lucky Strike Entertainment	1	4	4	0	2.33

Carnival currently has a consensus price target of $34.17, indicating a potential upside of 33.23%. Lucky Strike Entertainment has a consensus price target of $11.64, indicating a potential upside of 35.22%. Given Lucky Strike Entertainment’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Lucky Strike Entertainment is more favorable than Carnival.

Dividends

Carnival pays an annual dividend of $0.60 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.3%. Lucky Strike Entertainment pays an annual dividend of $0.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.8%. Carnival pays out 26.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Lucky Strike Entertainment pays out -36.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Lucky Strike Entertainment is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

67.2% of Carnival shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 68.1% of Lucky Strike Entertainment shares are owned by institutional investors. 7.9% of Carnival shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 84.2% of Lucky Strike Entertainment shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

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

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Carnival	11.48%	26.92%	6.20%
Lucky Strike Entertainment	-7.09%	N/A	-2.74%

Volatility & Risk

Carnival has a beta of 2.48, suggesting that its stock price is 148% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Lucky Strike Entertainment has a beta of 0.69, suggesting that its stock price is 31% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Carnival beats Lucky Strike Entertainment on 11 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Carnival

Carnival Corp. engages in the operation of cruise ships. It operates through the following business segments: North America and Australia (NAA) Cruise, Europe and Asia (EA) Cruise Operations, Cruise Support, and Tour and Others. The North America and Australia (NAA) Cruise segment includes the Carnival Cruise Line, Holland America Line, Princess Cruises, and Seabourn. The Europe and Asia (EA) Cruise Operations segment consists of AIDA, Costa, Cunard, and P&O Cruises (UK). The Cruise Support segment represents port destinations and private islands for the benefit of its cruise brands. The Tour and Other segment operates hotel and transportation operations of Holland America Princess Alaska Tours. The company was founded in 1972 and is headquartered in Miami, FL.

About Lucky Strike Entertainment

Lucky Strike Entertainment Corp. engages in operating bowling centers. It offers entertainment concepts with lounge seating, arcades, food and beverage offerings, and hosting and overseeing professional and non-professional bowling tournaments and related broadcasting. The company was founded by Thomas F. Shannon in 1997 and is headquartered in Mechanicsville, VA.