Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) CFO Naftali Holtz Sells 17,000 Shares

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) CFO Naftali Holtz sold 17,000 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.62, for a total value of $4,447,540.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 42,127 shares in the company, valued at $11,021,265.74. This trade represents a 28.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:RCL traded down $19.81 during trading on Thursday, hitting $244.20. 8,814,444 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,425,559. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 52-week low of $113.56 and a 52-week high of $277.08. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $244.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $211.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39, a current ratio of 0.17 and a quick ratio of 0.15. The company has a market cap of $65.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.84, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 2.59.

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

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.23%. This is a positive change from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.58%.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program 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 shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. UBS Group upped 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 raised their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Bank of America lifted their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Loop Capital assumed coverage on Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $250.00 price target for the company. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Four investment 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.

Institutional Trading of Royal Caribbean Cruises

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in RCL. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC raised its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 2,036 shares of the company’s stock worth $470,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the period. Ostrum Asset Management grew its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Ostrum Asset Management now owns 11,610 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,678,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,730 shares of the company’s stock valued at $630,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Hemington Wealth Management boosted its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 9.0% during the fourth quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 533 shares of the company’s stock valued at $123,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. Finally, Verdence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,358 shares of the company’s stock valued at $313,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Company 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.