Commonwealth Financial Services LLC Acquires New Shares in Carnival Corporation (NYSE:CCL)

Key Points

• Commonwealth Financial Services LLC has invested $206,000 in Carnival Corporation by acquiring 10,549 shares of stock.
• Carnival reported earnings of $0.35 per share, exceeding analysts' expectations of $0.24, and achieved a revenue of $6.33 billion for the quarter.
• Analysts have upgraded Carnival's stock ratings, with Citigroup raising the price target from $30 to $37, giving it a "buy" rating.

Commonwealth Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Carnival Corporation (NYSE:CCL - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 10,549 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $206,000.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. purchased a new stake in Carnival in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Carnival in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Carnival in the 1st quarter worth $25,000. Graybill Wealth Management LTD. bought a new stake in shares of Carnival during the 1st quarter worth $26,000. Finally, Wealthquest Corp purchased a new position in Carnival in the first quarter worth $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.19% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Susquehanna upped their target price on Carnival from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. Loop Capital restated a "hold" rating and set a $22.00 price target on shares of Carnival in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Carnival from $33.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. HSBC upgraded Carnival from a "reduce" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $24.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, TD Cowen began coverage on Carnival in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $36.00 price objective for the company. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Carnival has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $30.71.

Insider Buying and Selling at Carnival

In other Carnival news, Director Sir Jonathon Band sold 12,500 shares of Carnival stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.75, for a total transaction of $371,875.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 64,406 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,916,078.50. The trade was a 16.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 7.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Carnival Stock Down 2.2%

CCL stock traded down $0.64 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $28.37. The stock had a trading volume of 18,048,954 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,669,816. The business has a 50-day moving average of $27.33 and a two-hundred day moving average of $23.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.58, a current ratio of 0.34 and a quick ratio of 0.30. The firm has a market cap of $33.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 2.70. Carnival Corporation has a 52-week low of $14.49 and a 52-week high of $31.01.

Carnival (NYSE:CCL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 24th. The company reported $0.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.11. Carnival had a net margin of 9.72% and a return on equity of 27.88%. The company had revenue of $6.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.20 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.11 EPS. Carnival's quarterly revenue was up 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Carnival Corporation will post 1.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.