Stifel Nicolaus Lowers Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) Price Target to $265.00

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) had its target price reduced by investment analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $310.00 to $265.00 in a research report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus’ price objective indicates a potential upside of 26.43% from the company’s previous close.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $232.00 to $272.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $283.00 to $304.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Loop Capital upgraded shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $262.00 price objective on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $277.21.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Performance

Shares of RCL opened at $209.60 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $227.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $225.11. The stock has a market cap of $56.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.61, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.26. Royal Caribbean Cruises has a 52 week low of $125.06 and a 52 week high of $277.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39.

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

Royal Caribbean Cruises declared that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 12th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 1.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Royal Caribbean Cruises

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in RCL. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 618.8% in the fourth quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 115 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the third quarter worth about $31,000. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

About Royal Caribbean Cruises

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.