Carnival (NYSE:CUK) Shares Gap Up – What’s Next?

Carnival Corporation (NYSE:CUK) gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $25.20, but opened at $28.24. Carnival shares last traded at $28.3620, with a volume of 1,649,507 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CUK has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Zacks Research raised shares of Carnival to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Carnival from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Carnival Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $28.41 and its 200 day simple moving average is $27.35. The company has a market capitalization of $5.25 billion, a PE ratio of 12.36 and a beta of 2.51.

Carnival (NYSE:CUK) last issued its earnings results on Friday, March 27th. The company reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.18 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $6.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.13 billion. Carnival had a net margin of 11.48% and a return on equity of 26.92%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Carnival Corporation will post 1.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Sir Jonathon Band sold 11,988 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.19, for a total transaction of $313,965.72. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 52,601 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,377,620.19. The trade was a 18.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Carnival

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in CUK. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Carnival during the fourth quarter valued at $180,874,000. Deltroit Asset Management UK LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Carnival during the fourth quarter valued at $44,463,000. KCM Capital Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Carnival during the fourth quarter valued at $36,648,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its stake in shares of Carnival by 46.8% during the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 3,378,747 shares of the company’s stock valued at $102,477,000 after purchasing an additional 1,076,529 shares during the period. Finally, Voloridge Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Carnival by 4,622.5% during the fourth quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 803,443 shares of the company’s stock valued at $24,368,000 after purchasing an additional 786,430 shares during the period. 23.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Carnival

Carnival plc (NYSE: CUK) is one of the world’s leading cruise operators, offering leisure travel services to millions of passengers each year. Through its portfolio of brands, the company provides passenger cruises that combine accommodations, entertainment, dining, shore excursions and onboard amenities. Carnival’s vessels range from contemporary “fun ships” to premium and luxury experiences, catering to a broad spectrum of travelers from families and couples to solo adventurers.

Founded in 1972 by Ted Arison, the company has grown through organic fleet expansion and strategic acquisitions.