Fullerton Fund Management Co Ltd. Invests $761,000 in Carnival Corporation $CCL

Fullerton Fund Management Co Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Carnival Corporation (NYSE:CCL) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 24,927 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $761,000.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of CCL. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Carnival by 5.1% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 112,167 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,191,000 after buying an additional 5,435 shares during the last quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Carnival during the 1st quarter worth approximately $228,000. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in shares of Carnival by 61.6% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 30,437 shares of the company’s stock worth $594,000 after buying an additional 11,601 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP lifted its position in shares of Carnival by 41.9% during the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 88,522 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,729,000 after buying an additional 26,141 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Baird Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Carnival by 57.0% during the 2nd quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 64,720 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,820,000 after buying an additional 23,484 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.19% of the company’s stock.

Carnival Stock Performance

Shares of Carnival stock opened at $30.90 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $27.03 and its 200-day simple moving average is $28.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.73, a PEG ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 2.32. Carnival Corporation has a 12 month low of $22.58 and a 12 month high of $34.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82, a current ratio of 0.30 and a quick ratio of 0.26.

Carnival (NYSE:CCL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, March 27th. The company reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $6.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.13 billion. Carnival had a net margin of 11.48% and a return on equity of 26.92%. Carnival’s revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.13 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Carnival Corporation will post 2.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Carnival Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 18th were paid a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 18th. Carnival’s payout ratio is currently 26.67%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on CCL. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Carnival in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Citigroup lifted 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. Freedom Capital raised shares of Carnival to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Carnival from $37.00 to $36.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, HSBC raised shares of Carnival from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and cut their target price for the company from $33.60 to $30.10 in a report on Monday, March 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Carnival has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $34.94.

More Carnival News

Here are the key news stories impacting Carnival this week:

• Positive Sentiment: News that Carnival may beat second-quarter earnings estimates is supporting the stock, as investors look for another quarter of solid revenue and profit growth. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Lower oil prices after a U.S.-Iran peace agreement are easing fuel-cost pressure on cruise lines, which can improve margins for Carnival and peers. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Easing shipping-route risk is also helping sentiment around Carnival, since fewer geopolitical disruptions could support bookings and reduce uncertainty for the travel sector. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Several market commentary pieces continue to highlight Carnival as a notable leisure stock ahead of earnings, but they do not add a new company-specific catalyst. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Broader market weakness has been mixed, but Carnival’s gains suggest investors are favoring the cruise trade over the softer index backdrop today. Article Title

Insider Buying and Selling at Carnival

In other Carnival 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 value of $313,965.72. Following the transaction, 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Bettina Alejandra Deynes sold 43,058 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 directly owned 69,238 shares in the company, valued at $1,945,587.80. This represents a 38.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 55,058 shares of company stock worth $1,524,195 over the last three months. 7.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Carnival

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.