Baird Financial Group Inc. Raises Position in Carnival Co. & plc (NYSE:CCL)

Baird Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Carnival Co. & plc (NYSE:CCL) by 70.6% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 49,821 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 20,620 shares during the quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Carnival Co. & were worth $1,242,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Crewe Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Carnival Co. & by 275.8% during the fourth quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 1,210 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 888 shares during the last quarter. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Carnival Co. & during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Carnival Co. & during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Carnival Co. & during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Finally, Mizuho Bank Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Carnival Co. & during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $46,000. 67.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Carnival Co. & Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CCL opened at $22.75 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $26.54 billion, a PE ratio of 16.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 2.50. Carnival Co. & plc has a fifty-two week low of $13.78 and a fifty-two week high of $28.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.80, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 0.29. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $19.24 and a 200-day moving average of $23.01.

Carnival Co. & (NYSE:CCL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, March 21st. The company reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.02 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $5.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.74 billion. Carnival Co. & had a return on equity of 24.13% and a net margin of 7.66%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned ($0.14) earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Carnival Co. & plc will post 1.77 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on CCL shares. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Carnival Co. & in a research report on Monday, March 10th. BNP Paribas started coverage on Carnival Co. & in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $26.00 price target for the company. Barclays decreased their price target on Carnival Co. & from $32.00 to $26.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Citigroup lowered their target price on Carnival Co. & from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Finally, Macquarie lowered their target price on Carnival Co. & from $31.00 to $26.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Carnival Co. & has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $26.53.

Carnival Co. & 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.