Sovran Advisors LLC Purchases Shares of 1,721 Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Sovran Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 1,721 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $395,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Plato Investment Management Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. raised its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 257.4% in the third quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 168 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. 87.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on RCL. Barclays upped their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $287.00 to $308.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Macquarie raised their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $253.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $284.12.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Performance

NYSE RCL opened at $256.11 on Thursday. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 1 year low of $113.10 and a 1 year 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. The stock has a market capitalization of $68.86 billion, a PE ratio of 23.96, a P/E/G ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 2.59. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $243.15 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $207.31.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 company earned $1.25 EPS. Analysts predict that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $0.75 dividend. This is a positive change from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.17%. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.58%.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 1.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In related news, Director Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 230,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.62, for a total transaction of $53,732,600.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 18,556,860 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,335,253,633.20. This trade represents a 1.22 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Harri U. Kulovaara sold 3,256 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.62, for a total transaction of $763,922.72. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 22,348 shares in the company, valued at $5,243,287.76. The trade was a 12.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 372,609 shares of company stock valued at $87,647,208 in the last quarter. Insiders own 7.95% of the company’s stock.

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.