Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) Shares Gap Up Following Analyst Upgrade

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)’s share price gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday after Citigroup raised their price target on the stock from $204.00 to $253.00. The stock had previously closed at $183.39, but opened at $188.29. Citigroup currently has a buy rating on the stock. Royal Caribbean Cruises shares last traded at $188.91, with a volume of 323,422 shares changing hands.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Mizuho upped their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $168.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $175.00 to $204.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $168.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $210.00 to $213.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Royal Caribbean Cruises presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $187.19.

Insider Activity

In other Royal Caribbean Cruises news, CFO Naftali Holtz purchased 5,350 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were bought at an average price of $140.00 per share, for a total transaction of $749,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 48,256 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,755,840. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Naftali Holtz purchased 5,350 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was bought at an average price of $140.00 per share, for a total transaction of $749,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 48,256 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,755,840. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Vagn O. Sorensen sold 5,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.50, for a total value of $919,300.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 25,837 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,095,164.50. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 7.95% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of RCL. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 25.9% during the 3rd quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 486 shares of the company’s stock worth $86,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 18.1% in the 3rd quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,562 shares of the company’s stock worth $277,000 after purchasing an additional 239 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 241.5% during the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 888 shares of the company’s stock valued at $157,000 after acquiring an additional 628 shares in the last quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 10.0% in the third quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,911 shares of the company’s stock worth $694,000 after purchasing an additional 354 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Advisory Group LLC lifted its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 283.2% during the third quarter. Private Advisory Group LLC now owns 10,246 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,817,000 after acquiring an additional 7,572 shares during the last quarter. 87.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Trading Up 0.3 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.20, a quick ratio of 0.17 and a current ratio of 0.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $49.82 billion, a PE ratio of 24.95, a P/E/G ratio of 0.50 and a beta of 2.61. The company has a 50 day moving average of $164.72 and a two-hundred day moving average of $153.83.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $3.21 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.76 by $0.45. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a return on equity of 52.49% and a net margin of 16.32%. The firm had revenue of $4.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.05 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.82 earnings per share. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 11.63 EPS for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a — dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 20th. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.62%.

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.