Carnival Corporation (NYSE:CCL) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Carnival Corporation (NYSE:CCL) has been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-nine ratings firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, twenty have assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $34.4545.

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on CCL shares. Susquehanna upped their price target on Carnival from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. Melius Research upped their target price on shares of Carnival from $30.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 15th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Carnival from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 4th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Carnival from $36.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Carnival from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 22nd.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Carnival

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Causeway Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Carnival in the 1st quarter worth about $518,816,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Carnival by 6.0% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 126,663,493 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,561,777,000 after acquiring an additional 7,157,739 shares during the period. Holocene Advisors LP boosted its stake in Carnival by 184.3% in the second quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 10,289,947 shares of the company’s stock valued at $289,353,000 after acquiring an additional 6,669,935 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of Carnival by 99.6% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 12,159,619 shares of the company’s stock valued at $351,535,000 after acquiring an additional 6,066,336 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Carnival by 50.7% during the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 14,510,016 shares of the company’s stock worth $419,573,000 after purchasing an additional 4,883,024 shares during the last quarter. 67.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Carnival Stock Down 1.7%

Shares of NYSE CCL opened at $30.71 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 0.32 and a quick ratio of 0.28. Carnival has a 1 year low of $15.07 and a 1 year high of $32.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $35.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 2.53. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $27.56 and a 200-day moving average price of $28.62.

Carnival (NYSE:CCL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, December 19th. The company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.25 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $6.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.38 billion. Carnival had a net margin of 10.37% and a return on equity of 28.39%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.14 EPS. Carnival has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.170-0.170 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 2.480-2.48 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Carnival will post 1.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Carnival Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Investors of record on Friday, February 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 13th.

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.