Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) Shares Bought by Independent Advisor Alliance

Independent Advisor Alliance grew its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 20.7% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 6,267 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,073 shares during the period. Independent Advisor Alliance’s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $1,446,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 4,720 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,089,000 after purchasing an additional 235 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 104,406 shares of the company’s stock worth $24,085,000 after buying an additional 2,644 shares during the last quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 4th quarter valued at $230,000. Sowell Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 4th quarter worth $3,571,000. Finally, Personal CFO Solutions LLC boosted its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 7.2% in the fourth quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC now owns 1,536 shares of the company’s stock valued at $354,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. 87.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 14,992 shares of the firm’s 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 21,155 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,539,648.30. This trade represents a 41.48 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.95, for a total value of $15,193,100.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 143,214 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,514,907.30. The trade was a 28.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 109,492 shares of company stock valued at $28,571,705. Corporate insiders own 7.95% of the company’s stock.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Performance

NYSE RCL opened at $212.33 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39. The business’s 50 day moving average is $241.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is $219.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $57.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.86, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.53. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 12-month low of $125.06 and a 12-month high of $277.08.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last released 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 period in the previous year, the business earned $1.25 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, February 12th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 1.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign 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. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. This is a boost from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.41%. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.06%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on RCL. StockNews.com upgraded Royal Caribbean Cruises from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Tigress Financial raised their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $270.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Susquehanna reduced their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $305.00 to $295.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $253.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, 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. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $283.53.

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.