Why Is Carnival Stock Surging on Tuesday?

Carnival Corporation Ltd. (NYSE:CCL) stock is surging on Tuesday, primarily driven by ebbing crude oil prices and a broader market sector rally for airline and travel stocks.

The Nasdaq is up 0.26% while the S&P 500 is flat and Consumer Discretionary is leading with a 0.60% gain.

Oil prices fell for a fifth straight session, with Brent futures near $99 a barrel and crude oil futures around $91 as traders monitored diplomatic efforts regarding the conflict with Iran, coinciding with a U.S. President Donald Trump‘s address to the UN General Assembly, according to Trading economics.

Upcoming Third-Quarter Earnings

Carnival Corporation will release third-quarter earnings before the opening bell on Sept. 29.

Analysts expect the Miami, Florida-based firm to report quarterly earnings of $1.35 per stock, down from $1.43 per stock last year, on estimated quarterly revenue of $8.4 billion versus $8.15 billion previously.

On June 23, the company reported mixed second-quarter results and issued third-quarter adjusted EPS guidance below estimates.

Analyst Ratings Updates

According to Benzinga analyst tracking data, Goldman Sachs analyst Lizzie Dove maintained a Buy rating on Sept. 17, cutting the price forecast from $35 to $30. Stifel analyst Steven Wieczynski maintained a Buy rating on Sept. 16, lowering the price forecast from $37 to $35.

Technical Analysis

Even with today’s bounce, CCL is still trading 1.5% below its 20-day SMA and remains 10.6% below its 50-day SMA, which keeps the intermediate trend pointed down. The longer-term picture is also heavy, with the stock 16.7% below its 200-day SMA and a death cross in March (50-day SMA below the 200-day SMA) still acting as an overhead drag.

Zooming out, the sector has been in a slump recently, down 4.58% over the past 30 days and down 1.90% over the past 90 days, so today’s strength reads like a bounce rather than a clean trend reversal. If the sector can keep holding near the top of the leaderboard, it increases the odds CCL’s rally attempt can build beyond a one-day pop.

CCL Stock Price Activity: Carnival shares were up 2.80% at $22.93 at the time of publication on Tuesday, according to Benzinga Pro data.

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