Carnival Earnings Cruise Even Higher in Q1

Carnival reported better-than-expected fiscal first-quarter financial results before the markets opened on Thursday.

Published March 22, 2018, 10:15am ET · 2 min read

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Carnival Corp. (NYSE: CCL) reported its fiscal first-quarter financial results before the markets opened on Thursday. The company said that it had $0.52 in earnings per share (EPS) on $4.23 billion in revenue, versus consensus estimates from Thomson Reuters that called for $0.43 in EPS on revenue of $4.11 billion. In the same period of last year, Carnival said it had EPS of $0.38 and $3.79 billion in revenue.

During the quarter, gross revenue yields (revenue per available lower berth day, or ALBD) increased 9.2%. In constant currency, net revenue yields increased 3.9% for the first quarter, better than December guidance of up 1.5% to 2.5%.

At the same time, gross cruise costs including fuel per ALBD increased 9.0%. In constant currency, net cruise costs excluding fuel per ALBD increased 1.0%, better than December guidance of up 2.0% to 3.0%, principally due to the timing of expenses between quarters.

Looking ahead to the fiscal second quarter, the company expects to see EPS in the range of $0.56 to $0.60 and net revenue yields increasing 2.5% to 3.5% year over year. The consensus estimates call for $0.53 in EPS on $4.19 billion in revenue for the coming quarter.

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On the books, Carnival’s cash and cash equivalents totaled $453 million at the end of the quarter, up from $395 million at the end of the previous fiscal year.

Arnold Donald, president and CEO of Carnival, commented:

We are off to a strong start to the year achieving another quarter of record earnings on record revenues and exceeding the high end of guidance. This strong operational execution affirms our efforts to create demand in excess of measured capacity growth and exceed guest expectations once onboard. Our guest experience efforts, coupled with our ongoing marketing and public relations programs are clearly accelerating cruise demand across the board to drive cruise ticket prices higher.

Shares of Carnival were last seen up 1.3% to $67.90 on Thursday, with a consensus analyst price target of $76.99 and a 52-week trading range of $57.39 to $72.70.

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Chris Lange

Chris Lange is a financial and geopolitical writer with more than a decade of experience covering a myriad of topics. He has published thousands of articles for 24/7 Wall St., with past coverage focused heavily on stocks, IPOs, healthcare, defense, global affairs, and technology.

His work has been quoted, or referenced by a number of outlets including Business Insider, USA Today, Yahoo Finance, MSN, The Motley Fool, and many other publications. A graduate of Southwestern University, he studied business with a focus on investments and has previous experience in banking and startups.

When not reading or writing the news, he is following his passion for Lacrosse, playing chess, or building solar projects with his dad.

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