Mizuho Securities USA LLC Acquires 8,088 Shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Mizuho Securities USA LLC increased its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 52.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 23,445 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,088 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC’s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $5,409,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of RCL. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 11.0% during the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 23,040 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,086,000 after acquiring an additional 2,286 shares during the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC boosted its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 28.5% in the 3rd quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 2,933 shares of the company’s stock valued at $521,000 after buying an additional 651 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 64,321 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,408,000 after buying an additional 2,251 shares during the last quarter. Trustmark National Bank Trust Department bought a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 3rd quarter valued at $202,000. Finally, Banco Santander S.A. bought a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 3rd quarter valued at $375,000. 87.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

RCL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group increased their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $271.00 to $301.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Argus increased their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $280.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Susquehanna decreased their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $305.00 to $295.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Mizuho reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $253.00 price objective (down from $255.00) on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com raised Royal Caribbean Cruises from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Royal Caribbean Cruises currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $283.53.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Performance

Shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock opened at $215.76 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $58.07 billion, a PE ratio of 20.18, 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. 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 stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $240.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $221.60.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 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 prior year, the firm posted $1.25 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.39%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This is a boost from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio is 28.06%.

Royal Caribbean Cruises declared that its board has initiated a share buyback 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 generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Royal Caribbean Cruises news, CFO Naftali Holtz sold 17,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 42,127 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,021,265.74. This represents a 28.75 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 143,214 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,514,907.30. This trade represents a 28.83 % 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 worth $28,571,705. Corporate insiders own 7.95% of the company’s stock.

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.