Carnival (NYSE:CCL) Stock Price Up 6.8% on Analyst Upgrade

Carnival Corporation (NYSE:CCL) was up 6.8% during mid-day trading on Friday after Truist Financial raised their price target on the stock from $29.00 to $31.00. Truist Financial currently has a hold rating on the stock. Carnival traded as high as $26.81 and last traded at $26.9840. 7,224,766 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 71% from the average daily volume of 24,926,238 shares. The stock had previously closed at $25.27.

CCL has been the subject of several other research reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Carnival from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Carnival from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Citigroup upped their price target on Carnival from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 16th. Melius Research set a $36.00 target price on Carnival in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lowered shares of Carnival from a “market perform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $35.08.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Bettina Alejandra Deynes sold 43,058 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,945,587.80. The trade was a 38.34% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 7.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Carnival

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Carnival by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 128,133,282 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,913,190,000 after buying an additional 368,445 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Carnival by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 48,074,173 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,468,185,000 after purchasing an additional 704,433 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Carnival by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 29,450,412 shares of the company’s stock worth $896,104,000 after purchasing an additional 683,311 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC grew its holdings in Carnival by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Nuveen LLC now owns 26,729,524 shares of the company’s stock valued at $816,320,000 after purchasing an additional 364,529 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Auto Owners Insurance Co raised its position in shares of Carnival by 2,954.0% in the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 19,851,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $60,625,000 after purchasing an additional 19,201,000 shares during the period. 67.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Carnival Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 0.33 and a quick ratio of 0.29. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $27.52 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $28.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.87, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 2.32.

Carnival (NYSE:CCL) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, June 23rd. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.34 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $6.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.69 billion. Carnival had a net margin of 11.24% and a return on equity of 26.11%. The business’s revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.35 EPS. Carnival has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.220-2.220 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 1.350-1.350 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Carnival Corporation will post 2.23 EPS for the current year.

Carnival Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be given a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 7th. Carnival’s payout ratio is currently 27.03%.

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.