Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) Shares Sold by AMJ Financial Wealth Management

AMJ Financial Wealth Management reduced its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 11.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,451 shares of the company’s stock after selling 548 shares during the quarter. AMJ Financial Wealth Management’s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $1,027,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. National Pension Service lifted its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 138.9% during the fourth quarter. National Pension Service now owns 864,049 shares of the company’s stock worth $199,327,000 after purchasing an additional 502,349 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 4th quarter valued at about $69,556,000. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd lifted its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2,042.8% during the 4th quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 122,887 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,349,000 after acquiring an additional 117,152 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 138.2% in the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 161,835 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,703,000 after acquiring an additional 93,899 shares during the period. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the third quarter valued at approximately $14,544,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In related news, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 14,992 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.86, for a total transaction of $3,925,805.12. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 21,155 shares in the company, valued at $5,539,648.30. This trade represents a 41.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.95, for a total value of $15,193,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 143,214 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $37,514,907.30. This trade represents a 28.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 109,492 shares of company stock valued at $28,571,705. 7.95% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on RCL. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of 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. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Truist Financial raised their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $204.00 to $272.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Macquarie boosted their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Susquehanna raised their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $245.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $284.12.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Down 2.2 %

Royal Caribbean Cruises stock opened at $240.71 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39, a quick ratio of 0.15 and a current ratio of 0.17. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a one year low of $124.24 and a one year high of $277.08. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $244.80 and a 200-day simple moving average of $216.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $64.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.52, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.59.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 in the previous year, the business posted $1.25 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, February 12th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 1.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.25%. This is an increase from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s payout ratio is presently 28.06%.

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.