- Carnival shares tumbled as much as 15% on Thursday after the firm announced a second coronavirus-related lockdown on one of its ships.
- The cruise line has now erased nearly half of its market value since the coronavirus outbreak began.
- The company issued a partial lockdown of passengers on its Grand Princess ship on Wednesday after one former passenger died to COVID-19 and another tested positive for the virus.
- The outbreak has dragged heavily on the tourism and travel sectors as itineraries are scrapped and companies halt non-essential travel.
- Watch Carnival trade live here.
Carnival stock tanked as much as 15% on Thursday after a second cruise ship in the company's fleet issued a coronavirus-related lockdown.
The travel company has now seen 46% of its market value erased since the coronavirus outbreak began dominating headlines in mid-January. Carnival's Diamond Princess made headlines when the company issued a weeks-long quarantine of passengers and staff on the ship after cases of the virus were confirmed onboard.
More than 700 people on the ship contracted coronavirus by the time the quarantine ended, and six individuals died. The event dragged on Carnival shares through early February and drove numerous guidance cuts for the firm's next-quarter revenue.
The latest lockdown is taking place on Carnival's Grand Princess ship, where two passengers on the ship's February 11-21 trip contracted coronavirus. One of the passengers died of COVID-19 on Wednesday, prompting Carnival's lockdown.
Some passengers have been told to stay in their rooms until they can receive virus screenings. Carnival is working alongside the Centers for Disease Control to study the outbreak and avoid further contagion, the company said in a statement.
"The CDC is continuing to actively collect information and is collaborating with us to determine what, if any, actions need to be taken during the current Hawaii cruise and upon the ship's return to San Francisco," Carnival said.
The new virus scare marks a dire warning for the ailing travel and tourism sectors. Airlines have seen their stock prices slip through the past month as travel bans in China, Italy, and Japan cut into planned itineraries. Cancellation of major industry events in Switzerland, Spain, and Berlin has impacted travel firms and countries' tourism revenue.
Carnival closed at $27.87 per share as of 4 p.m. ET Thursday, down roughly 46% year-to-date.
The company has six "buy" ratings, 13 "hold" ratings, and one "sell" rating from analysts, with a consensus price target of $48.49, according to Bloomberg data.
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