May Hill Capital LLC Takes Position in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

May Hill Capital LLC acquired a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 1,477 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $341,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 511.0% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,157 shares of the company’s stock worth $498,000 after purchasing an additional 1,804 shares in the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC raised its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 20.1% in the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 6,630 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,530,000 after buying an additional 1,111 shares in the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 76.1% during the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 28,991 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,142,000 after buying an additional 12,530 shares during the period. Lorne Steinberg Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter worth about $231,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 291,027 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,137,000 after acquiring an additional 7,740 shares during the last quarter. 87.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Performance

NYSE RCL opened at $205.60 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.23, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.53. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $237.90 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $224.44. 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 fifty-two week low of $125.06 and a fifty-two week high of $277.08.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last issued its quarterly 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 last year, the firm posted $1.25 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This is a positive change from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.46%. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio is 28.06%.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Macquarie raised their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Mizuho reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $253.00 price objective (down previously from $255.00) on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Citigroup lifted their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $283.00 to $304.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $287.00 to $308.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Royal Caribbean Cruises presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $279.58.

Insider Activity at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In related news, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.95, for a total transaction of $15,193,100.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 143,214 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,514,907.30. This represents a 28.83 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.68, for a total transaction of $5,005,260.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 185,021 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $47,491,190.28. This represents a 9.53 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 109,492 shares of company stock valued at $28,571,705. 7.95% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.