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Carnival Corporation (CCL) operates as a cruise and vacation company with a market cap of $17.08 billion. Headquartered in Miami, Florida, the company is the largest cruise operator in the world. Carnival is the world’s leading leisure travel firm, carrying nearly half of the global cruise guests. The company operates through four segments: NAA Cruise Operations, Europe Cruise Operations, Cruise Support, and Tour and Other.
Shares of the cruise line operator have outperformed the broader market considerably over the past year. CCL has gained 34.8% over this time frame, while the S&P 500 Index ($SPX) has risen 24.5%. But in 2024, CCL stock is down 18%, while the SPX is up 9.8% on a YTD basis.
Zooming in further, CCL’s gains over the past 52 weeks easily overshadow the Defiance Hotel, Airline, and Cruise ETF (CRUZ). The exchange-traded fund has gained nearly 14.6% over the past year. However, the stock’s YTD loss lags behind the ETF’s 1.1% loss.
CCL’s weak price action relative to the broader indexes this year can be attributed to its negative free cash flow of $370 million, loss of $214 million, and adjusted loss per share of $0.14 in the first quarter. The company reported passenger cruise days of 23.5 million, missing Wall Street expectations of 24 million.
For the current fiscal year, ending in November, analysts expect CCL to report earnings per share of $1 on a diluted basis. The company’s earnings surprise history is impressive. It beat the consensus estimate in each of the last four quarters.
Among the 21 analysts covering CCL stock, the consensus rating is a “Strong Buy.” That’s based on 17 “Strong Buy” ratings, one “Moderate Buy,” two “Holds,” and one “Strong Sell.”
This configuration is more bullish than three months ago, with 15 analysts suggesting a “Strong Buy.”
Recently, Stifel Financial analysts reduced the target price by $1 to $25 but maintained their Buy rating on the stock.
The mean price target of $21.55 represents a 41.8% premium to CCL’s current price levels. The Street-high price target of $25 suggests an ambitious upside potential of 64.5%.
On the date of publication, Dipanjan Banchur did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
