Pacer Advisors Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in Carnival Corporation (NYSE:CCL)

Key Points

• Pacer Advisors Inc. significantly reduced its holdings in Carnival Corporation by 95.2%, selling 1,180,437 shares and now owning 59,131 shares valued at approximately $1.16 million.
• Carnival's recent earnings report showed a better-than-expected $0.35 EPS for the quarter, surpassing estimates, with revenue of $6.33 billion, marking a 9.5% year-over-year increase.
• Wall Street analysts have given Carnival a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”, with a target price of $30.71, reflecting varied expectations on its stock performance.

Pacer Advisors Inc. reduced its stake in Carnival Corporation (NYSE:CCL - Free Report) by 95.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 59,131 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,180,437 shares during the quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Carnival were worth $1,155,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. KBC Group NV grew its holdings in shares of Carnival by 0.8% in the first quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 73,391 shares of the company's stock worth $1,433,000 after purchasing an additional 553 shares during the last quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems grew its holdings in shares of Carnival by 0.9% in the first quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems now owns 70,058 shares of the company's stock worth $1,368,000 after purchasing an additional 638 shares during the last quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Carnival by 5.0% in the first quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 16,833 shares of the company's stock worth $329,000 after purchasing an additional 799 shares during the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC grew its holdings in shares of Carnival by 7.3% in the first quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 11,740 shares of the company's stock worth $229,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp grew its holdings in shares of Carnival by 1.6% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 55,492 shares of the company's stock worth $1,084,000 after purchasing an additional 868 shares during the last quarter. 67.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Carnival Stock Down 2.4%

Shares of CCL traded down $0.71 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $29.06. The company had a trading volume of 26,863,895 shares, compared to its average volume of 19,550,636. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $26.72 and a 200-day moving average price of $23.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.58, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.71, a P/E/G ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 2.70. Carnival Corporation has a 52-week low of $13.78 and a 52-week high of $31.01.

Carnival (NYSE:CCL - Get Free Report) last posted 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. The firm had revenue of $6.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.20 billion. Carnival had a return on equity of 27.88% and a net margin of 9.72%. Carnival's quarterly revenue was up 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.11 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Carnival Corporation will post 1.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CCL has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Tigress Financial raised their target price on shares of Carnival from $32.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday. Macquarie cut their price target on shares of Carnival from $31.00 to $26.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 9th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Carnival from $30.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. Susquehanna lifted their price target on shares of Carnival from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Carnival from $31.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Carnival currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $30.71.

Carnival Company Profile

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.