Carnival posts shallower-than-anticipated loss, sending shares higher

Investing.com -- Shares in Carnival (NYSE:CCL) rose in early U.S. trading on Thursday after the cruise line operator reported a narrower-than-anticipated loss in its fourth quarter.

The Miami-based company posted a net loss of $48 million, or a diluted per-share loss of $0.04, in the three months ended on Nov. 30. Analysts had called for a loss of $0.13, according to LSEG data cited by Reuters.

In a statement, Chief Executive Josh Weinstein said that "nearly two-thirds" of its occupancy is already booked for 2024 "at considerably higher prices," pointing to resilient demand for cruises despite a time of high inflation and elevated interest rates that has threatened to weigh on consumer spending.

"We continue to experience strong bookings momentum across the board, with our European brands showing remarkable strength during the quarter with booking volumes running up well into the double digits," Weinstein noted.

He added that bookings in the two weeks around the key Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales events reached an "all-time high" for that period.

For the current fiscal year, Carnival now expects adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization to grow by 30% compared to 2023 to about $5.6 billion.

First-quarter core income in particular is seen doubling year-on-year, while net yields -- a measure of revenue per passenger per cruise day, excluding costs -- are projected to climb approximately 16.5%.