Carnival Unusual Options Activity For December 22

Investors with a lot of money to spend have taken a bearish stance on Carnival CCL.

And retail traders should know.

We noticed this today when the trades showed up on publicly available options history that we track here at Benzinga.

Whether these are institutions or just wealthy individuals, we don't know. But when something this big happens with CCL, it often means somebody knows something is about to happen.

So how do we know what these investors just did?

Today, Benzinga's options scanner spotted 12 uncommon options trades for Carnival.

This isn't normal.

The overall sentiment of these big-money traders is split between 41% bullish and 58%, bearish.

Out of all of the special options we uncovered, 2 are puts, for a total amount of $167,445, and 10 are calls, for a total amount of $431,870.

Predicted Price Range

After evaluating the trading volumes and Open Interest, it's evident that the major market movers are focusing on a price band between $9.0 and $36.0 for Carnival, spanning the last three months.

Volume & Open Interest Trends

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 $9.0 to $36.0 in the last 30 days.

Carnival 30-Day Option Volume & Interest Snapshot

Largest Options Trades Observed:

About Carnival

Carnival is the largest global cruise company, with 90 ships in service at the end of fiscal 2022. 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; and P&O Cruises in Australia. Carnival also owns Holland America Princess Alaska Tours in Alaska and the Canadian Yukon. Carnival's brands attracted about 13 million guests in 2019, prior to COVID-19, a level it should reach again in 2023.

In light of the recent options history for Carnival, it's now appropriate to focus on the company itself. We aim to explore its current performance.

Current Position of Carnival

• Trading volume stands at 25,234,424, with CCL's price down by -0.68%, positioned at $19.06.
• RSI indicators show the stock to be may be overbought.
• Earnings announcement expected in 94 days.

What The Experts Say On Carnival

In the last month, 5 experts released ratings on this stock with an average target price of $21.6.

• Maintaining their stance, an analyst from Stifel continues to hold a Buy rating for Carnival, targeting a price of $25.
• Maintaining their stance, an analyst from Wells Fargo continues to hold a Equal-Weight rating for Carnival, targeting a price of $22.
• An analyst from Barclays has decided to maintain their Overweight rating on Carnival, which currently sits at a price target of $24.
• An analyst from Melius Research upgraded its action to Buy with a price target of $19.
• Consistent in their evaluation, an analyst from Deutsche Bank keeps a Hold rating on Carnival with a target price of $18.

Trading options involves greater risks but also offers the potential for higher profits. Savvy traders mitigate these risks through ongoing education, strategic trade adjustments, utilizing various indicators, and staying attuned to market dynamics. Keep up with the latest options trades for Carnival with Benzinga Pro for real-time alerts.