Carnival (NYSE:CUK) versus Planet Fitness (NYSE:PLNT) Financial Comparison

Planet Fitness (NYSE:PLNT) and Carnival (NYSE:CUK) are both mid-cap consumer discretionary companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, analyst recommendations, profitability, valuation, institutional ownership, earnings and dividends.

Volatility & Risk

Planet Fitness has a beta of 1.27, indicating that its stock price is 27% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Carnival has a beta of 2.54, indicating that its stock price is 154% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

95.5% of Planet Fitness shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 23.8% of Carnival shares are held by institutional investors. 0.8% of Planet Fitness shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 0.1% of Carnival shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Planet Fitness and Carnival”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Planet Fitness	$1.18 billion	7.50	$172.04 million	$2.45	43.42
Carnival	$26.62 billion	0.22	$2.76 billion	$2.00	15.78

Carnival has higher revenue and earnings than Planet Fitness. Carnival is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Planet Fitness, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Planet Fitness and Carnival’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Planet Fitness	15.97%	-126.58%	8.08%
Carnival	10.37%	28.39%	6.09%

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings for Planet Fitness and Carnival, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Planet Fitness	0	3	10	2	2.93
Carnival	0	1	0	0	2.00

Planet Fitness presently has a consensus price target of $119.67, indicating a potential upside of 12.48%. Given Planet Fitness’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, research analysts clearly believe Planet Fitness is more favorable than Carnival.

Summary

Planet Fitness beats Carnival on 11 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Planet Fitness

Planet Fitness, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, franchises and operates fitness centers under the Planet Fitness brand. The company operates through three segments: Franchise, Corporate-Owned Stores, and Equipment. The company is involved in franchising business in the United States, Puerto Rico, Canada, Panama, Mexico, and Australia. It engages in the sale of fitness equipment to franchisee-owned stores in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. In addition, the company operates corporate-owned stores in the United States and Canada. Planet Fitness, Inc. was founded in 1992 and is headquartered in Hampton, New Hampshire.

About Carnival

Carnival Plc operates as a global cruise and vacation company. The firm offers holiday and vacation products to a customer base that is broadly varied in terms of cultures, languages and leisure-time preferences. It operates through the North America and Australia (NAA), Europe and Asia (EA), Cruise Support, and Tour and Other segments. The NAA segment includes Carnival Cruise Line, Holland America Line, P and O Cruises (Australia), Princess and Seabourn. The EA segment includes AIDA, Costa, Cunard, and P and O Cruises (UK). The Cruise Support segment includes a portfolio of port destinations and other services, all of which are operated for the benefit of cruise brands. The Tour and Other segment represents the hotel and transportation operations of Holland America Princess Alaska Tours and other operations. The company was founded on July 19, 2000 and is headquartered in Southampton, the United Kingdom.