China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. Reduces Stock Position in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. reduced its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 23.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,129 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,018 shares during the quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $2,343,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Plato Investment Management Ltd acquired a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the third quarter worth about $27,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. grew its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 257.4% in the third quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 168 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC bought a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance

Shares of NYSE RCL opened at $266.48 on Friday. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a fifty-two week low of $113.10 and a fifty-two week high of $277.08. The stock has a market cap of $71.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.93, a P/E/G ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 2.59. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $240.36 and its 200 day simple moving average is $201.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 in the prior year, the firm posted $1.25 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 15 EPS for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Investors of record on Friday, December 27th were issued a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 27th. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.83%. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s payout ratio is currently 20.58%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Harri U. Kulovaara sold 3,256 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.62, for a total transaction of $763,922.72. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 22,348 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,243,287.76. This trade represents a 12.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 139,353 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock in a transaction on 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 directly owns 18,167,507 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,321,868,240.23. The trade was a 0.76 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 372,609 shares of company stock worth $87,647,208. 7.95% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on RCL shares. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $204.00 to $272.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $253.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Tigress Financial raised their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $210.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $274.19.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Company 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.