Why Does Carnival Have 2 Stocks -- and Which Is the Better Buy?

The cruise-ship industry has been one of the biggest economic victims of the global pandemic of COVID-19. With a significant outbreak affecting many passengers aboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship in early 2020, owner Carnival (NYSE: CCL) (NYSE: CUK) found itself at the epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic, from both a public-health perspective and the standpoint of investors in its stock.

One odd thing that confuses many investors about Carnival is that it has two different ticker symbols. That raises two obvious but not-so-simple questions: Why are there two separate stocks, and which one is better for would-be shareholders looking to invest in the cruise giant?

Carnival's business structure is unusual in that it incorporates two separate legal entities that nevertheless function as a single economic entity. Carnival Corporation has common stock under the ticker CCL on the New York Stock Exchange (a subsidiary of Intercontinental Exchange), and that has by far the greater volume of shares changing hands each trading day.

Source Fool.com