QRG Capital Management Inc. Has $10.40 Million Stock Position in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 8.4% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 45,068 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 3,499 shares during the quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $10,397,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 511.0% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,157 shares of the company’s stock worth $498,000 after purchasing an additional 1,804 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC boosted its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 20.1% during the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 6,630 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,530,000 after buying an additional 1,111 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 76.1% during the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 28,991 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,142,000 after buying an additional 12,530 shares in the last quarter. Lorne Steinberg Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $231,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 291,027 shares of the company’s stock valued at $67,137,000 after acquiring an additional 7,740 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Down 2.5 %

Shares of RCL opened at $238.01 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $64.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.59. 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 Ltd. has a 52 week low of $121.18 and a 52 week high of $277.08. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $244.59 and its 200 day simple moving average is $214.84.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last announced its earnings results 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 return on equity of 48.97% and a net margin of 17.46%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.25 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, February 12th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 1.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.26%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This is a boost from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s payout ratio is presently 28.06%.

Insider Activity at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In other Royal Caribbean Cruises news, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.95, for a total transaction of $15,193,100.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 143,214 shares in the company, valued at $37,514,907.30. This represents a 28.83 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.68, for a total transaction of $5,005,260.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 185,021 shares in the company, valued at $47,491,190.28. This represents a 9.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 109,492 shares of company stock worth $28,571,705. Corporate insiders own 7.95% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on RCL shares. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $250.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $287.00 to $308.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $290.00 price target for the company. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $271.00 to $301.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Royal Caribbean Cruises has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $284.12.

About Royal Caribbean Cruises

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.