Carnival Corp (NYSE:CCL) stock rose 8.09% (As on June 27, 1:02:33 AM UTC-4, Source: Google Finance) after the company reported fiscal second-quarter loss and forecast higher-than-expected costs for the year. The results came in above analysts’ expectations as the company continues to benefit from the pent-up demand for travel in the aftermath of the pandemic. Net losses for the quarter to May 31 narrowed by 78%, to $407 million, from $1.83 billion in the same period a year ago. Passenger-ticket revenue soared 144.4% to $3.14 billion amid higher pricing, and onboard and other revenue increased 58.6% to $1.77 billion. The company said adjusted cruise costs, excluding fuel, jumped 13.5% for the quarter compared with the same period in 2019 before the pandemic. It said it expects costs for the year to be higher than its past guidance.

CCL in the second quarter of FY 23 has reported the adjusted loss per share of 31 cents, beating the analysts’ estimates for the adjusted loss per share of 34 cents, according to the FactSet consensus . The company had reported the adjusted revenue growth of 104.5 percent to $4.91 billion in the second quarter of FY 23, beating the analysts’ estimates for revenue of $4.79 billion. Operating income for the second quarter of 2023 was $120 million, turning positive for the first time since the resumption of guest cruise operations and marking a significant milestone. Adjusted EBITDA for the second quarter of 2023 was $681 million, at the high end of the March guidance range of $600 million to $700 million. Total customer deposits reached an all-time high of $7.2 billion (as of May 31, 2023), surpassing the previous record of $6.0 billion (as of May 31, 2019) by over $1 billion, driven by strong demand, bundled package offerings and pre-cruise sales, and a 26% increase compared to the prior quarter.

Carnival expects fiscal 2023 third quarter earnings per share (EPS) in a range of $0.70 to $0.77. Analysts had been looking for a profit of $0.76. Carnival has about $7.5 billion in debt maturing by the end of 2025, and it plans to use excess liquidity to prepay debt and reduce interest expenses, according to its earnings presentation. Management said it had $7.3 billion in liquidity as of the second quarter, and it plans to reduce its total debt to “less than $33 billion” by the end of 2023 from a peak of $35 billion. For the full year 2023, the company expects Adjusted EBITDA to be in the range of $4.10 billion to $4.25 billion.