Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. $RCL Stake Lifted by Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ

Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ grew its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 73.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 137,322 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 58,077 shares during the quarter. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ owned about 0.05% of Royal Caribbean Cruises worth $44,435,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in RCL. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 30,066,167 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,728,810,000 after buying an additional 461,990 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 3.3% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,492,549 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,293,302,000 after buying an additional 330,770 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 6.6% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,667,927 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,079,877,000 after buying an additional 415,230 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 9.4% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,317,996 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,038,997,000 after acquiring an additional 284,037 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the second quarter worth about $1,021,893,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Performance

Royal Caribbean Cruises stock opened at $315.34 on Friday. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a fifty-two week low of $164.01 and a fifty-two week high of $366.50. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $302.05 and its 200-day simple moving average is $303.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77, a current ratio of 0.18 and a quick ratio of 0.16. The company has a market cap of $85.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 1.91.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $2.80 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.80. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a return on equity of 45.06% and a net margin of 23.80%.The business had revenue of $4.26 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.28 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.63 earnings per share. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. This is a positive change from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.62%.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 10th that allows the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 2.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Key Stories Impacting Royal Caribbean Cruises

Here are the key news stories impacting Royal Caribbean Cruises this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Company raised its quarterly dividend to $1.50 (annualized $6.00); ex‑dividend/record/pay dates disclosed — a cash return boost that supports shareholder sentiment. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Board-authorized $2.0 billion share buyback program—management signaling conviction in long‑term value, which can support the stock and EPS. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Board upgrade — appointment of Christopher J. Wiernicki adds maritime/regulatory expertise that could improve governance and operational oversight. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst coverage remains constructive: several firms have raised targets or reiterated buys (consensus price target near $348), which can attract investor interest but is not an immediate catalyst. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Positive media/momentum stories (Zacks, FXEmpire) highlight RCL as a long‑term value/flow beneficiary — may support continued inflows but not a near‑term driver by itself. Read More. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Large, repeated insider selling by director Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen across Feb. 13–19 (multiple transactions totaling hundreds of thousands of shares, tens of millions of dollars) — a clear short‑term negative signal that has pressured the stock. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Additional insider disposals (Laura H. Bethge, Maritza Gomez Montiel) in the same window amplify the selling signal and raise near‑term concern about insider conviction. Read More. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Rising crude / fuel costs: coverage flags that oil near multi‑month highs can hit margins quickly for cruise operators (especially with notable leverage), creating downside risk to earnings and multiples. Read More.

Analyst Ratings Changes

RCL has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Mizuho set a $379.00 price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Friday, January 30th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $353.00 to $304.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 12th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating and set a $380.00 target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Friday, January 30th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $332.00 to $398.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Royal Caribbean Cruises from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $348.29.

Insider Transactions at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In related news, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 7,854 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $326.21, for a total value of $2,562,053.34. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 32,786 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,695,121.06. The trade was a 19.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Michael W. Bayley sold 80,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $326.82, for a total value of $26,145,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 58,108 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,990,856.56. This trade represents a 57.93% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 722,164 shares of company stock valued at $233,668,845. Insiders own 6.95% of the company’s stock.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Company Profile

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE: RCL), operating as part of the Royal Caribbean Group, is a global cruise company that develops, markets and operates passenger cruise ships. The company operates multiple consumer-facing cruise brands that offer short- and long-duration itineraries and a range of onboard experiences. Its core activities include itineraries and voyage operations, guest services and hospitality, onboard food and beverage, entertainment and recreation programming, and the commercial activities needed to sell and support cruises through both direct and travel‑agent channels.

Royal Caribbean’s ships serve a broad set of geographies worldwide, regularly deploying vessels in the Caribbean, North America (including Alaska), Europe, Asia, Australia and South America.