Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) CEO Jason T. Liberty Sells 58,000 Shares of Stock

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.95, for a total transaction of $15,193,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 143,214 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,514,907.30. This trade represents a 28.83 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:RCL opened at $244.20 on Friday. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 1 year low of $113.56 and a 1 year high of $277.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $65.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 2.59. 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 company’s 50 day simple moving average is $244.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $211.77.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) 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 period last year, the business posted $1.25 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.23%. This is a boost from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio is 28.06%.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan 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 shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Mizuho restated an “outperform” rating and set a $253.00 price objective (down previously from $255.00) on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target 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. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $290.00 target price for the company. Finally, Susquehanna raised their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $245.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $284.12.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Royal Caribbean Cruises

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in RCL. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $707,833,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 8.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,072,316 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,476,003,000 after acquiring an additional 2,068,114 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 3,544.4% during the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 963,034 shares of the company’s stock worth $222,166,000 after acquiring an additional 936,609 shares during the last quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main increased its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 24.0% in the 4th quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 2,653,258 shares of the company’s stock worth $612,080,000 after purchasing an additional 513,702 shares in the last quarter. Finally, National Pension Service raised its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 138.9% in the fourth quarter. National Pension Service now owns 864,049 shares of the company’s stock valued at $199,327,000 after purchasing an additional 502,349 shares during the last quarter. 87.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.