Carnival (NYSE:CCL) Releases Q4 2026 Earnings Guidance

Carnival (NYSE:CCL) updated its fourth quarter 2026 earnings guidance on Tuesday morning. The company provided earnings per share (EPS) guidance of 0.200-0.200 for the period, compared to the consensus EPS estimate of 0.250. The company issued revenue guidance of -. Carnival also updated its FY 2026 guidance to 2.240-2.240 EPS.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Carnival from $38.00 to $36.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 14th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Carnival from $37.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 16th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Carnival in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $30.00 target price for the company. Citigroup boosted their price target on Carnival from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on Carnival from $35.00 to $30.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Carnival currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $34.45.

Carnival Trading Up 11.6%

NYSE:CCL opened at $24.71 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $33.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.13, a P/E/G ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 2.31. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $25.29 and its 200-day moving average is $26.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 0.33. Carnival has a 52 week low of $21.45 and a 52 week high of $34.03.

Carnival (NYSE:CCL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 29th. The company reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $8.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.39 billion. Carnival had a net margin of 11.24% and a return on equity of 26.11%. Carnival has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 0.200-0.200 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 2.240-2.240 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Carnival will post 2.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Carnival Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 7th were paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 7th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Carnival’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.03%.

Key Stories Impacting Carnival

Here are the key news stories impacting Carnival this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Carnival reported that third-quarter 2026 results outperformed guidance, with its best-ever revenue, net yields and net income. Record bookings also provide a strong foundation for 2027, reinforcing the company’s demand recovery and pricing momentum. Carnival third-quarter 2026 results
• Positive Sentiment: The results offer a favorable contrast with the recent share-price weakness and may ease concerns that Carnival’s recovery is losing momentum. Strong bookings are particularly important because they support future occupancy, pricing and onboard revenue.
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors had been focused on whether management would discuss dividends, Holland America and fleet upgrades during the earnings update. These topics could influence the next phase of Carnival’s capital-allocation and growth strategy. Carnival earnings preview
• Neutral Sentiment: Princess Cruises, a Carnival brand, launched an AI-powered cruise-planning app within ChatGPT. The initiative could improve customer discovery and bookings, but its near-term financial effect on CCL is uncertain. Princess Cruises AI app launch
• Negative Sentiment: Higher fuel prices remain a major concern because they can raise voyage costs and compress margins. Bank of America cut its Carnival price target as this cost pressure intensified, contributing to investor caution despite the company’s operational gains. Bank of America cuts Carnival price target
• Negative Sentiment: Pre-earnings coverage also highlighted Carnival’s substantial debt burden and shares trading near a 52-week low. Those balance-sheet and valuation concerns may limit the market’s reaction unless management provides reassuring guidance on costs, cash flow and debt reduction.

About Carnival

Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE: CCL) is a global leisure travel company that operates cruise lines and related vacation businesses. Its brands offer ocean cruises, onboard entertainment, dining, accommodation, excursions and other travel experiences to passengers across a range of price points and destinations.

The company’s portfolio includes Carnival Cruise Line, Princess Cruises, Holland America Line, Seabourn, Cunard, P&O Cruises, P&O Cruises Australia, AIDA Cruises and Costa Cruises.