Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) Shares Sold by Blue Trust Inc.

Blue Trust Inc. lowered its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 68.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 437 shares of the company’s stock after selling 953 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $101,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Plato Investment Management Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the third quarter worth $26,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the third quarter worth $27,000. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the third quarter worth $31,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Finally, ORG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter worth $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance

Royal Caribbean Cruises stock opened at $234.16 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $244.35 and its 200-day simple moving average is $212.86. The company has a market capitalization of $63.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.59. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 1 year low of $119.48 and a 1 year 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.

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

Royal Caribbean Cruises declared that its board has approved 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 stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. This is an increase from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.28%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.58%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.68, for a total transaction of $5,005,260.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 185,021 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $47,491,190.28. This represents a 9.53 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.95, for a total transaction of $15,193,100.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly 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. Insiders have sold a total of 109,492 shares of company stock valued at $28,571,705 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 7.95% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on RCL. StockNews.com raised shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Argus lifted their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $280.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Mizuho reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $253.00 price objective (down previously from $255.00) on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $283.00 to $304.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $290.00 price objective for the company. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $284.12.

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.