On Sept. 20, Miami-based cruise ship operator Carnival Cruise Lines
- Carnival took delivery of a couple of new ships just in time for the lucrative summer season and filled them to capacity. The results are showing in revenue and earnings growth.
- If you thought the bottom line looked good, shoot a glance at the cash flow figures. Yes, free cash flow ballooned mostly thanks to lower capital expenditures, but to everything (turn, turn, turn) there is a season (turn, turn, turn).
- Those steady margins are impressive in the light of 7.4% higher fuel costs over last year.
- The cruise business is booming, judging by recent results from Carnival, Royal Caribbean
(NYSE:RCL) , and the big-boat division of Disney(NYSE:DIS) . But you can ride all of their successes with one investment -- check out five-star Motley Fool CAPS stock and Rule Breaker Steiner Leisure(NASDAQ:STNR) .
(Figures are in millions, except per-share data.)
Income Statement Highlights
|
Q3 2007 |
Q3 2006 |
Change |
|
|---|---|---|---|
|
Sales |
$4,321 |
$3,905 |
10.7% |
|
Net Profit |
$1,377 |
$1,232 |
11.8% |
|
EPS |
$1.67 |
$1.49 |
12.1% |
|
Diluted Shares |
829.0 |
831.0 |
(0.2%) |
Get back to basics with the income statement.
Margin Checkup
|
Q3 2007 |
Q3 2006 |
Change* |
|
|---|---|---|---|
|
Gross Margin |
49.3% |
49.4% |
(0.1) |
|
Operating Margin |
34.5% |
34.3% |
0.2 |
|
Net Margin |
31.9% |
31.6% |
0.3 |
*Expressed in percentage points.
Margins are the earnings engine.
Balance Sheet Highlights
|
Assets |
Q3 2007 |
Q3 2006 |
Change |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Cash + ST Invest. |
$1,753 |
$615 |
185.0% |
|
Accounts Rec. |
$423 |
$396 |
6.8% |
|
Inventory |
$297 |
$278 |
6.8% |
|
Liabilities |
Q3 2007 |
Q3 2006 |
Change |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Accounts Payable |
$468 |
$498 |
(6.0%) |
|
Long-Term Debt |
$5,735 |
$6,556 |
(12.5%) |
The balance sheet reflects the company's health.
Cash Flow Highlights
|
Q3 2007 |
Q3 2006 |
Change |
|
|---|---|---|---|
|
Cash From Ops. |
$1,122 |
$943 |
19.0% |
|
Capital Expenditures |
$246 |
$699 |
(64.8%) |
|
Free Cash Flow |
$876 |
$244 |
259.0% |
|
$1,410 |
$788 |
78.9% |
Free cash flow is a Fool's best friend.
Related Foolishness:
- Carnival on Cruise Control
- Foolish Forecast: Carnival Ready to Cruise
- Royal Caribbean Navigates the Fuel Undertow
- Investing in Your Backyard: Miami
Fool by Numbers is designed to give you the raw earnings information in a timely fashion, putting all the numbers you need in one easy-to-read place. But at The Motley Fool, we believe numbers tell only part of the story, so check Fool.com for more of our in-depth discussion of what the numbers mean.
