Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) Holdings Trimmed by Blair William & Co. IL

Blair William & Co. IL cut its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 2.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 76,230 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,009 shares during the quarter. Blair William & Co. IL’s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $17,586,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. NEOS Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 28.5% in the 4th quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC now owns 11,183 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,580,000 after purchasing an additional 2,483 shares in the last quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co increased its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co now owns 23,627 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,451,000 after buying an additional 2,045 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 8.9% during the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 387,437 shares of the company’s stock valued at $88,700,000 after acquiring an additional 31,814 shares during the last quarter. Graney & King LLC bought a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 4th quarter worth $69,000. Finally, Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. now owns 1,900 shares of the company’s stock worth $438,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. 87.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Down 4.6 %

RCL opened at $207.35 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $55.80 billion, a PE ratio of 19.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.53. The business has a 50-day moving average of $238.63 and a 200-day moving average of $223.27. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a fifty-two week low of $125.06 and a fifty-two week high of $277.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39, a current ratio of 0.17 and a quick ratio of 0.15.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.13. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a net margin of 17.46% and a return on equity of 48.97%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.25 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, February 12th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to buy up to 1.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.45%. This is an increase from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In related news, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.95, for a total value of $15,193,100.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 143,214 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,514,907.30. This trade represents a 28.83 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Naftali Holtz sold 17,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.62, for a total value of $4,447,540.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 42,127 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,021,265.74. The trade was a 28.75 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 109,492 shares of company stock worth $28,571,705 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 7.95% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on RCL. Susquehanna reiterated a “positive” rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research report on Tuesday. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $250.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Mizuho restated an “outperform” rating and set a $253.00 price target (down previously from $255.00) on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Loop Capital raised shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Argus lifted their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $280.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $282.33.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Company Profile

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. operates as a cruise company worldwide. The company operates cruises under the Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises, and Silversea Cruises brands, which comprise a range of itineraries. As of February 21, 2024, it operated 65 ships. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.