Carnival (CCL) Laps the Stock Market: Here’s Why

Tue, Aug 26, 2025, 5:45 PM 3 min read

Carnival (CCL) ended the recent trading session at $31.90, demonstrating a +2.08% change from the preceding day’s closing price. This move outpaced the S&P 500’s daily gain of 0.41%. Meanwhile, the Dow experienced a rise of 0.3%, and the technology-dominated Nasdaq saw an increase of 0.44%.

Shares of the cruise operator witnessed a gain of 5.11% over the previous month, beating the performance of the Consumer Discretionary sector with its gain of 2.08%, and the S&P 500’s gain of 0.87%.

The investment community will be paying close attention to the earnings performance of Carnival in its upcoming release. The company is predicted to post an EPS of $1.31, indicating a 3.15% growth compared to the equivalent quarter last year. Simultaneously, our latest consensus estimate expects the revenue to be $8.05 billion, showing a 1.99% escalation compared to the year-ago quarter.

Regarding the entire year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates forecast earnings of $2 per share and revenue of $26.49 billion, indicating changes of +40.85% and +5.86%, respectively, compared to the previous year.

Investors should also note any recent changes to analyst estimates for Carnival. Such recent modifications usually signify the changing landscape of near-term business trends. Therefore, positive revisions in estimates convey analysts’ confidence in the business performance and profit potential.

Our research demonstrates that these adjustments in estimates directly associate with imminent stock price performance. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.

The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has remained unchanged. Right now, Carnival possesses a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

In terms of valuation, Carnival is currently trading at a Forward P/E ratio of 15.62. This valuation marks a discount compared to its industry average Forward P/E of 22.12.

Also, we should mention that CCL has a PEG ratio of 0.7. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company’s expected earnings growth rate. By the end of yesterday’s trading, the Leisure and Recreation Services industry had an average PEG ratio of 1.13.

The Leisure and Recreation Services industry is part of the Consumer Discretionary sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 176, which puts it in the bottom 29% of all 250+ industries.