Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) Shares Sold by Fidelis Capital Partners LLC

Fidelis Capital Partners LLC lowered its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 4.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,488 shares of the company’s stock after selling 119 shares during the quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $574,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Plato Investment Management Ltd acquired a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the third quarter valued at $27,000. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Finally, ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. 87.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In other Royal Caribbean Cruises news, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was 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 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 14,992 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.86, for a total value of $3,925,805.12. Following the completion of the sale, 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 109,492 shares of company stock valued at $28,571,705 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 7.95% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on RCL shares. Mizuho reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $253.00 price objective (down from $255.00) on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Loop Capital started coverage on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $250.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $271.00 to $301.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Macquarie increased their price objective on shares of 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, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $250.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $284.12.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance

NYSE:RCL opened at $240.71 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 52 week low of $124.24 and a 52 week high of $277.08. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $244.80 and its 200-day moving average price is $216.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $64.78 billion, a PE ratio of 22.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.59.

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

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 1.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership 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 given a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This is a boost from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.25%. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio is currently 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.