Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC has slightly decreased its stake in Carnival Co. & plc (NYSE: CCL) by 0.7% during the fourth quarter, as disclosed in their latest filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm now holds 36,098,898 shares after selling 270,374 shares, making Carnival their largest investment, accounting for about 3.1% of their portfolio, with a value of approximately $899,585,000.
In addition to Barrow Hanley, several other institutional investors have altered their positions in Carnival. Crewe Advisors LLC notably increased its stake by 275.8%, acquiring an additional 888 shares to hold a total of 1,210 shares valued at around $30,000. Other firms such as New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC, Millstone Evans Group LLC, and 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. have also recently invested in Carnival, reflecting a broader interest in the stock. Hedge funds collectively own 67.19% of Carnival’s shares.
Recent updates from analysts show a mix of ratings. Citigroup reduced its target price on Carnival from $31.00 to $30.00 while maintaining a “buy” rating. Conversely, Morgan Stanley changed its position from “underweight” to “equal weight” with a revised price target of $21.00. Stifel Nicolaus slightly increased their target to $31.00, and Barclays lowered theirs from $32.00 to $26.00, maintaining an “overweight” rating. Overall, Carnival has received ratings of “Moderate Buy” with an average target price of $26.53 from various analysts.
Despite a marginal decline in stock price to $22.27 during midday trading, Carnival’s performance over the past year shows strong resilience. The stock has fluctuated between a low of $13.78 and a high of $28.72, with a current market capitalization of $25.98 billion. The company appears to be on a gradual recovery path, especially following a recent earnings report where Carnival surpassed expectations with earnings of $0.13 per share and revenue of $5.81 billion, reflecting a year-over-year revenue increase of 7.5%.
Carnival’s impressive operational structure, encompassing various cruise brands, continues to position it favorably in the market. Investors may take delight in the company’s progress, particularly as analysts project an earnings per share of 1.77 for the current fiscal year, indicating a potentially fruitful outlook for Carnival Co. in the cruise industry.