Carnival Offers Its Ships as Hospitals During the Coronavirus Crisis
Late this week, Carnival (NYSE: CCL) announced its offer to governments and health authorities to use its cruise ships for temporary medical facilities, as the growing number of COVID-19 cases could put pressure on land-based hospitals. This could be seen as a good PR move for the company and a positive move as well since the cruise industry has been under intense pressure because of ships being linked to the spread of the disease.
Shares of Carnival are down 76% year-to-date, following the global public health debacle around the coronavirus. Carnival announced plans to suspend all cruises through April 9, with service resuming on April 10. On March 19, Carnival announced that its first-quarter earnings were halved to $0.22 a share versus $0.49 a year ago, citing a $0.23 per share impact from COVID-19-related cancellations.
Given the severity of the current health crisis, on top of the COVID-19 deaths and infections linked to some cruise ships, it will likely take time for consumers to become fully comfortable with taking cruises. The move to offer its ships as hospitals is a step in the right direction for Carnival to regain goodwill from customers.
Source Fool.com
