Revenue growth
Profitability
The cruise ship operator achieved profitability for the first time since resuming guest cruise operations. The company delivered GAAP net income of $1.07 billion, or $0.79 per share, for the third quarter of 2023. Adjusted EPS amounted to $0.86, which also exceeded analysts’ projections. This is a significant improvement from the adjusted net losses of $0.31 per share in Q2 and $0.55 per share in Q1.
Favorable trends
Carnival is seeing strong demand for travel as consumers choose to spend on experiences than material goods. Booking volumes in the third quarter remained high, running nearly 20% above 2019 levels. In addition, first-time cruisers reached 170% of prior-year levels in Q3.
Total customer deposits for the third quarter stood at $6.3 billion, surpassing the previous Q3 record of $4.9 billion by 28%. The company also saw strong performance from its segments with North America and Australia, and Europe both outperforming expectations.
Better-than-expected full-year outlook
Carnival has forecasted an adjusted net loss of $0.04-0.12 per share for the full year of 2023, which is better than analysts’ projections of a loss of $0.17 per share. On the other hand, for the fourth quarter of 2023, the company expects an adjusted loss of $0.10-0.18 per share, with analysts predicting a loss of $0.11 per share.