StockNews.com Upgrades Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) to Hold

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) was upgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Friday.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on the stock. Tigress Financial lifted their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $155.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $175.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $168.00 to $183.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $182.13.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Trading Down 0.9 %

RCL stock traded down $1.47 during trading on Friday, reaching $156.55. 1,737,242 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,525,271. The company has a current ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 0.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.20. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $159.07 and a 200-day moving average price of $146.06. Royal Caribbean Cruises has a 1 year low of $78.35 and a 1 year high of $173.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.17, a P/E/G ratio of 0.47 and a beta of 2.61.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $3.21 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.76 by $0.45. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a net margin of 16.32% and a return on equity of 52.49%. The company had revenue of $4.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.05 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.82 earnings per share. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s quarterly revenue was up 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Royal Caribbean Cruises will post 11.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Royal Caribbean Cruises news, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 3,073 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.71, for a total transaction of $518,445.83. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 27,388 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,620,629.48. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 3,073 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.71, for a total value of $518,445.83. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 27,388 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,620,629.48. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Naftali Holtz bought 5,350 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The stock was bought at an average price of $140.00 per share, with a total value of $749,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer now owns 48,256 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,755,840. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders sold 28,457 shares of company stock worth $4,452,898 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 7.95% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. raised its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 463.8% in the 4th quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 733 shares of the company’s stock valued at $95,000 after purchasing an additional 603 shares during the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp raised its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 11,347 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,470,000 after purchasing an additional 259 shares during the last quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 43.2% in the 4th quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,585 shares of the company’s stock valued at $464,000 after purchasing an additional 1,081 shares during the last quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 4th quarter valued at $265,000. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 4th quarter valued at $746,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.