Xponance Inc. Grows Stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Xponance Inc. increased its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 2.8% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 41,366 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,132 shares during the quarter. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $9,543,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 2,036 shares of the company’s stock valued at $470,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,730 shares of the company’s stock valued at $630,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Hemington Wealth Management lifted its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 533 shares of the company’s stock valued at $123,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,358 shares of the company’s stock valued at $313,000 after buying an additional 47 shares during the period. Finally, Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,360 shares of the company’s stock valued at $544,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In other news, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 14,992 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.86, for a total transaction of $3,925,805.12. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 21,155 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,539,648.30. This trade represents a 41.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Naftali Holtz sold 17,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.62, for a total transaction 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 approximately $11,021,265.74. The trade was a 28.75 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 109,492 shares of company stock worth $28,571,705. Company insiders own 7.95% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $250.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $204.00 to $272.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Citigroup raised their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $283.00 to $304.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Loop Capital raised 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. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $283.53.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:RCL opened at $203.34 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $240.70 and a 200-day moving average of $220.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39, a quick ratio of 0.15 and a current ratio of 0.17. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a one year low of $125.06 and a one year high of $277.08. The company has a market capitalization of $54.72 billion, a PE ratio of 19.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.53.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 prior year, the firm earned $1.25 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 12th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 1.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.48%. This is a boost 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 28.06%.

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.