Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) Stock Position Raised by Vestcor Inc

Vestcor Inc lifted its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 19.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,567 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 895 shares during the period. Vestcor Inc’s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $1,284,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. National Pension Service raised its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 138.9% during the 4th quarter. National Pension Service now owns 864,049 shares of the company’s stock worth $199,327,000 after buying an additional 502,349 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $69,556,000. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd lifted its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2,042.8% in the 4th quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 122,887 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,349,000 after acquiring an additional 117,152 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 138.2% during the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 161,835 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,703,000 after purchasing an additional 93,899 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 3rd quarter valued at $14,544,000. 87.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 14,992 shares of the company’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 transaction of $3,925,805.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 21,155 shares in the company, valued at $5,539,648.30. The trade was a 41.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Naftali Holtz sold 17,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.62, for a total transaction of $4,447,540.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 42,127 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,021,265.74. The trade was a 28.75 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 109,492 shares of company stock valued at $28,571,705. Insiders own 7.95% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on RCL. Truist Financial raised their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $204.00 to $272.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. Barclays lifted their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $287.00 to $308.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Tigress Financial increased their price target 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 decreased 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 report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Royal Caribbean Cruises currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $283.53.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Up 2.1 %

Shares of RCL stock opened at $212.33 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $241.31 and its 200 day simple moving average is $219.88. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a twelve month low of $125.06 and a twelve month high of $277.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39, a quick ratio of 0.15 and a current ratio of 0.17. The company 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 (NYSE:RCL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 in the previous year, the business earned $1.25 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current year.

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

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The firm 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. 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 1.41%. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s payout ratio is presently 28.06%.

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.