Carnival (NYSE:CCL) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Morgan Stanley Analyst Says

Key Points

• Morgan Stanley has raised its price target for Carnival (NYSE: CCL) from $30.00 to $32.00, suggesting an upside of 11.61% from the previous close, while maintaining an "equal weight" rating.
• Despite the increase, Zacks Research downgraded Carnival from a "strong-buy" to a "hold," while other analysts have mixed ratings and target price adjustments, with an average consensus target price of $32.90.
• The company reported earnings of $1.43 per share, exceeding estimates, along with revenue of $8.15 billion, reflecting a 3.3% year-over-year increase.

Carnival (NYSE:CCL - Get Free Report) had its price objective hoisted by research analysts at Morgan Stanley from $30.00 to $32.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "equal weight" rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley's price target indicates a potential upside of 11.61% from the stock's previous close.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on CCL. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Carnival from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 18th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Carnival from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 23rd. Loop Capital restated a "hold" rating and issued a $22.00 price objective on shares of Carnival in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Argus cut their target price on shares of Carnival from $40.00 to $35.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Citigroup restated a "buy" rating and issued a $38.00 price objective (up previously from $37.00) on shares of Carnival in a report on Wednesday. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $32.90.

Carnival Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CCL traded down $0.24 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $28.67. The company's stock had a trading volume of 12,590,626 shares, compared to its average volume of 23,371,348. The business's 50 day moving average price is $30.51 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $25.35. The company has a market cap of $33.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.93, a P/E/G ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 2.70. Carnival has a fifty-two week low of $15.07 and a fifty-two week high of $32.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.58, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.34.

Carnival (NYSE:CCL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, September 29th. The company reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $8.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.09 billion. Carnival had a net margin of 10.07% and a return on equity of 29.66%. Carnival's revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.27 earnings per share. Carnival has set its Q4 2025 guidance at 0.230-0.230 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 2.140-2.140 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Carnival will post 1.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Carnival news, Director Sir Jonathon Band sold 12,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.75, for a total transaction of $371,875.00. Following the sale, the director owned 64,406 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,916,078.50. The trade was a 16.25% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 7.60% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Carnival

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Carnival by 2,135.8% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 463,974 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,061,000 after buying an additional 443,222 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its stake in Carnival by 8.7% during the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 1,912,145 shares of the company's stock worth $37,344,000 after buying an additional 152,538 shares during the period. Czech National Bank lifted its holdings in Carnival by 6.8% during the 1st quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 240,659 shares of the company's stock worth $4,700,000 after buying an additional 15,397 shares in the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. increased its position in shares of Carnival by 127,575.0% during the first quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 5,107 shares of the company's stock worth $99,000 after acquiring an additional 5,103 shares during the period. Finally, Merit Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of Carnival by 109.5% during the first quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 56,846 shares of the company's stock worth $1,110,000 after acquiring an additional 29,716 shares during the period. 67.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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