Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC Raises Stock Position in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC boosted its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 2.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 132,806 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,815 shares during the period. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC’s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $30,637,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Asset Planning Inc acquired a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 4th quarter valued at $784,000. DT Investment Partners LLC grew its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 16.7% during the 4th quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 350 shares of the company’s stock valued at $81,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 18.3% during the 4th quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 149,729 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,843,000 after purchasing an additional 23,160 shares in the last quarter. Life Planning Partners Inc acquired a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 4th quarter valued at $5,322,000. Finally, Avestar Capital LLC grew its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 9.1% during the 4th quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 2,053 shares of the company’s stock valued at $474,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. 87.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In related news, EVP Harri U. Kulovaara sold 3,256 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.62, for a total value of $763,922.72. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 22,348 shares in the company, valued at $5,243,287.76. This trade represents a 12.72 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 139,353 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $237.89, for a total transaction of $33,150,685.17. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 18,167,507 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,321,868,240.23. This represents a 0.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 392,109 shares of company stock worth $92,652,468 in the last ninety days. 7.95% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on RCL. 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 report on Wednesday, November 13th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $283.00 to $304.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Argus raised their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $280.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. StockNews.com raised shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Macquarie raised their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Royal Caribbean Cruises has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $284.12.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Trading Up 1.1 %

NYSE RCL opened at $262.99 on Friday. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a one year low of $113.10 and a one year high of $277.08. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $243.47 and a 200-day simple moving average of $208.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39, a quick ratio of 0.15 and a current ratio of 0.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.71 billion, a PE ratio of 24.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 2.59.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 last year, the firm posted $1.25 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.96 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This is an increase from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.14%. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.58%.

Royal Caribbean Cruises 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.