What the Options Market Tells Us About Carnival

Author: Benzinga Insights | July 12, 2024 10:34am

High-rolling investors have positioned themselves bullish on Carnival (NYSE:CCL), and it's important for retail traders to take note. \This activity came to our attention today through Benzinga's tracking of publicly available options data. The identities of these investors are uncertain, but such a significant move in CCL often signals that someone has privileged information.

Today, Benzinga's options scanner spotted 9 options trades for Carnival. This is not a typical pattern.

The sentiment among these major traders is split, with 55% bullish and 33% bearish. Among all the options we identified, there was one put, amounting to $99,983, and 8 calls, totaling $780,863.

Predicted Price Range

Analyzing the Volume and Open Interest in these contracts, it seems that the big players have been eyeing a price window from $15.0 to $22.0 for Carnival during the past quarter.

Insights into Volume & Open Interest

Looking at the volume and open interest is a powerful move while trading options. This data can help you track the liquidity and interest for Carnival's options for a given strike price. Below, we can observe the evolution of the volume and open interest of calls and puts, respectively, for all of Carnival's whale trades within a strike price range from $15.0 to $22.0 in the last 30 days.

Carnival Option Volume And Open Interest Over Last 30 Days

Biggest Options Spotted:

Symbol	PUT/CALL	Trade Type	Sentiment	Exp. Date	Ask	Bid	Price	Strike Price	Total Trade Price	Open Interest	Volume
CCL	CALL	SWEEP	NEUTRAL	09/20/24	$2.07	$2.01	$2.07	$17.00	$271.5K	3.2K	14
CCL	CALL	SWEEP	BEARISH	06/20/25	$5.35	$5.25	$5.25	$15.00	$157.5K	4.4K	5
CCL	CALL	SWEEP	BEARISH	06/20/25	$5.25	$5.15	$5.15	$15.00	$138.1K	4.4K	305
CCL	PUT	SWEEP	BULLISH	01/17/25	$4.25	$4.2	$4.2	$22.00	$99.9K	645	0
CCL	CALL	SWEEP	BULLISH	08/23/24	$0.75	$0.65	$0.72	$19.00	$51.1K	144	0

About Carnival

Carnival is the largest global cruise company, with 92 ships in service at the end of fiscal 2023. Its portfolio of brands includes Carnival Cruise Lines, Holland America, Princess Cruises, and Seabourn in North America; P&O Cruises and Cunard Line in the United Kingdom; Aida in Germany; Costa Cruises in Southern Europe. It's currently folding its P&O Australia brand into Carnival. The firm also owns Holland America Princess Alaska Tours in Alaska and the Canadian Yukon. Carnival's brands attracted nearly 13 million guests in 2019, prior to covid-19, a level it reached again in 2023.

Current Position of Carnival

• Currently trading with a volume of 6,135,727, the CCL's price is down by -0.06%, now at $18.11.
• RSI readings suggest the stock is currently may be overbought.
• Anticipated earnings release is in 77 days.

What Analysts Are Saying About Carnival

In the last month, 5 experts released ratings on this stock with an average target price of $22.4.

• An analyst from Citigroup has decided to maintain their Buy rating on Carnival, which currently sits at a price target of $22.
• Consistent in their evaluation, an analyst from B of A Securities keeps a Buy rating on Carnival with a target price of $24.
• An analyst from Deutsche Bank persists with their Hold rating on Carnival, maintaining a target price of $19.
• An analyst from Susquehanna persists with their Positive rating on Carnival, maintaining a target price of $22.
• An analyst from Argus Research has decided to maintain their Buy rating on Carnival, which currently sits at a price target of $25.

Options trading presents higher risks and potential rewards. Astute traders manage these risks by continually educating themselves, adapting their strategies, monitoring multiple indicators, and keeping a close eye on market movements. Stay informed about the latest Carnival options trades with real-time alerts from Benzinga Pro.

Posted In: CCL