Fundamental analysis CCL (Carnival Corp)

Updated on 07/20/2026

We analyzed Carnival stock against the 10 quality criteria of Lubin Investment. The company gets a quality score of 7/10, meaning medium quality, and a P/FCF valuation multiple of 13.2×.

Sector: Travel Services. Listing: US. Current price: 27.41 USD.

Lubin scoring methodology

Carnival Corp (CCL)'s score is calculated automatically from 10 objective financial criteria, with no human intervention or opinion. Each criterion is validated (YES / PARTIAL / NO) based on thresholds drawn from the financial literature (Warren Buffett, Bettin-Mauboussin, Aswath Damodaran). The final score is the sum of validations.

The 10 quantitative criteria analyzed

1. Profitable: positive net margin
2. Growing revenue: revenue growing > 10%/year over 5 years
3. Growing earnings per share: FCF per share adjusted for stock-based compensation, > 10%/year over 5 years
4. Share count under control: stable or declining (net buybacks = value creation for shareholders)
5. Cash profitability: free cash flow margin > 10% of revenue
6. Expanding margins: operating margin widens over 5 years (operating leverage)
7. Return on invested capital: Bettin-Mauboussin Cash ROCE > 15% per year
8. Debt under control: net debt repayable in less than 3 years of free cash flow
9. Earnings converted to cash: free cash flow exceeds accounting net income
10. Net collection period: short or negative cash conversion cycle

Frequently asked questions

Is Carnival a quality stock?

Carnival gets a quality score of 7/10 (medium quality), calculated over the 10 Lubin Investment criteria: profitability, revenue and free cash flow growth, share buybacks, margins, debt and return on capital.

How is Carnival's score calculated?

The score is the total of validated criteria (YES / PARTIAL / NO) using thresholds drawn from the financial literature (Warren Buffett, Mauboussin, Aswath Damodaran), automatically and with no human opinion.

What is Carnival's P/FCF?

The price-to-free-cash-flow (P/FCF) multiple of Carnival stock is 13.2×. At Lubin Investment, valuation is judged separately from quality.

Where to see Carnival's full analysis?

The full interactive analysis (10-criteria detail, history, P/FCF valuation, sector comparisons) is available at https://lubin-investment.com/analyse/CCL?lng=en.

Articles about Carnival

• Carnival (CCL) Q2 2026: our post-results verdict (2026-06-23)
• Should you buy Carnival (CCL) stock before earnings? (2026-06-22)

Other stocks in the Travel Services sector

• Booking Holdings (BKNG) — score 10/10, P/FCF 15.3×
• Airbnb (ABNB) — score 10/10, P/FCF 27.6×
• Viking Holdings (VIK) — score 9/10, P/FCF 26.2×
• Trainline (TRN.L) — score 9/10, P/FCF 1177.1×
• On the Beach Group (OTB.L) — score 9/10, P/FCF 1200.7×

Go further

👉 See the full interactive analysis of CCL

Other resources : Detailed methodology · All stocks in the Travel Services sector · Stocks rated 10 out of 10 · Top quality companies · Lubin Investment pricing.