Bank of America Corp DE Sells 508,798 Shares of Carnival Corporation $CCL

Key Points

• Bank of America reduced its Carnival stake by 7% in the first quarter, selling 508,798 shares and retaining 6.75 million shares valued at approximately $174.7 million. Institutional investors collectively own 67.19% of Carnival.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $35.08, despite one downgrade to “Hold.” Recent targets range from $35 to $37.
• Carnival reported quarterly EPS of $0.41, beating estimates of $0.34, while revenue rose 5.3% year over year to $6.66 billion. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share, representing a 2.0% annualized yield.

Bank of America Corp DE lessened its stake in Carnival Corporation (NYSE:CCL - Free Report) by 7.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,750,400 shares of the company's stock after selling 508,798 shares during the quarter. Bank of America Corp DE owned 0.54% of Carnival worth $174,700,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Auto Owners Insurance Co lifted its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 19,201,000 shares during the period. Viking Global Investors LP purchased a new stake in shares of Carnival during the 4th quarter valued at about $429,448,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Carnival by 2,432.8% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 6,689,954 shares of the company's stock valued at $204,311,000 after purchasing an additional 6,425,822 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of Carnival by 99.6% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 12,159,619 shares of the company's stock worth $351,535,000 after purchasing an additional 6,066,336 shares during the period. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Carnival by 1,619.1% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,132,270 shares of the company's stock worth $156,740,000 after buying an additional 4,833,723 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.19% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CCL has been the subject of a number of research reports. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Carnival from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. Loop Capital initiated coverage on shares of Carnival in a research note on Monday, June 1st. They set a "buy" rating and a $36.00 price target on the stock. Argus set a $35.00 price objective on shares of Carnival in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Melius Research set a $36.00 target price on Carnival in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Carnival from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Monday, May 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $35.08.

Carnival Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of CCL opened at $29.73 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $40.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 2.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 0.33 and a quick ratio of 0.29. Carnival Corporation has a 1 year low of $23.45 and a 1 year high of $34.03. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $27.90 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $27.87.

Carnival (NYSE:CCL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, June 23rd. The company reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.34 by $0.07. Carnival had a net margin of 11.24% and a return on equity of 26.11%. The firm had revenue of $6.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.69 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.35 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. 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 analysts expect that Carnival Corporation will post 2.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Carnival Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 7th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. Carnival's payout ratio is presently 27.03%.

Insider Activity at Carnival

In other Carnival news, insider Bettina Alejandra Deynes sold 43,058 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.10, for a total transaction of $1,209,929.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 69,238 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,945,587.80. This represents a 38.34% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 7.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.

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