Saudi Arabia Acquires 8 Percent Stake in Carnival Corp

The sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia, The Public Investment Fund (PIF) has acquired an 8.2 percent stake in Carnival Corp.

Citing the cruise giant’s securities filing on Monday, Travel Weekly reports that PIF purchased 43.51 million Carnival shares in a transaction worth approximately $370 million.

Carnival temporarily suspended cruise operations last month along with rival companies due to the global impact of coronavirus (COVID-19) and has seen its stock fall by about 80 percent since mid-January.

Carnival has been successful in raising funds to combat the crisis but it’ll come at a cost. The company announced that it’s paying 11.5 percent interest on $4 billion in three-year senior secured notes and 5.75 percent interest on $1.75 billion in three-year senior convertible notes.

The world’s largest cruise operator with a combined fleet of more than 100 ships, Carnival’s portfolio includes the namesake Carnival Cruise Line as well as Princess Cruises, Holland America Line, Seabourn, P&O Cruises (Australia), Costa Cruises, AIDA Cruises, P&O Cruises (UK) and Cunard.