Carnival (NYSE:CCL) Releases Q3 2026 Earnings Guidance

Carnival (NYSE:CCL) issued an update on its third quarter 2026 earnings guidance on Tuesday. The company provided earnings per share guidance of 1.350-1.350 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of 1.420. The company issued revenue guidance of -. Carnival also updated its FY 2026 guidance to 2.220-2.220 EPS.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Carnival from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Carnival from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 28th. Truist Financial dropped their target price on Carnival from $30.00 to $29.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 22nd. HSBC raised Carnival from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $33.60 to $30.10 in a research report on Monday, March 30th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price target on Carnival from $33.00 to $28.70 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $34.94.

Carnival Stock Performance

Carnival stock traded down $1.79 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $28.40. 20,777,827 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 25,842,381. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $27.33 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $28.35. Carnival has a fifty-two week low of $23.45 and a fifty-two week high of $34.03. The stock has a market cap of $35.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 2.32. 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, June 23rd. The company reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $6.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.69 billion. Carnival had a net margin of 11.48% and a return on equity of 26.92%. 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, research analysts expect that Carnival will post 2.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Carnival Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th were issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 18th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Carnival’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.67%.

Insider Transactions at Carnival

In related news, Director Sir Jonathon Band sold 11,988 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.19, for a total transaction 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. This trade represents a 18.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Bettina Alejandra Deynes sold 43,058 shares of Carnival stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.10, for a total transaction of $1,209,929.80. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 69,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,945,587.80. This trade represents a 38.34% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders sold 55,058 shares of company stock valued at $1,524,195. 7.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Key Stories Impacting Carnival

Here are the key news stories impacting Carnival this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Carnival delivered record Q2 revenue, record adjusted net income, and continued aggressive shareholder returns, including more than $450 million in stock buybacks, which shows operating momentum and capital return discipline.
• Positive Sentiment: Lower fuel prices and strong booking trends have been supporting the cruise industry, which can improve margins and help earnings if the trend continues.
• Neutral Sentiment: The company beat EPS expectations for the quarter, but revenue came in slightly below consensus, making the results solid but not broadly surprising to investors. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Carnival’s updated Q3 2026 EPS guidance of 1.35 came in below the 1.42 consensus estimate, signaling softer near-term earnings than Wall Street expected.
• Negative Sentiment: Full-year 2026 EPS guidance of 2.22 also slightly trails the 2.23 forecast, reinforcing concerns that growth may be leveling off.
• Negative Sentiment: The company said recent disruption from the Iran war hurt bookings, especially in Europe and the Mediterranean, adding geopolitical uncertainty to the demand outlook. Article Title

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CCL. Compound Planning Inc. lifted its position in Carnival by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 24,680 shares of the company’s stock worth $754,000 after purchasing an additional 766 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in Carnival by 27.5% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 13,922,516 shares of the company’s stock valued at $425,194,000 after acquiring an additional 3,005,752 shares during the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC raised its stake in Carnival by 219.2% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 713,436 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,788,000 after acquiring an additional 489,959 shares in the last quarter. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Carnival by 39.2% in the fourth quarter. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC now owns 22,097 shares of the company’s stock worth $675,000 after acquiring an additional 6,223 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Tennessee Department of Treasury boosted its stake in shares of Carnival by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury now owns 412,904 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,395,000 after purchasing an additional 17,880 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.19% of the company’s stock.

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.