Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) Position Boosted by Jones Financial Companies Lllp

Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 61.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 15,786 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,026 shares during the quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp’s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $3,642,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Plato Investment Management Ltd purchased a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, ORG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Royal Caribbean Cruises news, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 14,992 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.86, for a total transaction of $3,925,805.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 21,155 shares in the company, valued at $5,539,648.30. This represents a 41.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.68, for a total value of $5,005,260.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 185,021 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $47,491,190.28. This represents a 9.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 109,492 shares of company stock worth $28,571,705 over the last three months. 7.95% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. Susquehanna increased their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $245.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Loop Capital assumed coverage on Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $250.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $232.00 to $272.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $290.00 price objective on the stock. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $284.12.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Down 6.0 %

Shares of RCL stock opened at $226.67 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $61.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.59. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a one year low of $124.24 and a one year high of $277.08. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $244.53 and a 200 day moving average price of $217.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39, a current ratio of 0.17 and a quick ratio of 0.15.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last issued 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 return on equity of 48.97% and a net margin of 17.46%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.25 earnings per share. Analysts predict 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 share buyback plan on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to purchase up to 1.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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. This is a positive change from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.32%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.06%.

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.