Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) Shares Bought by Geode Capital Management LLC

Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 6.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 5,969,532 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 353,893 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $1,373,856,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in RCL. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised 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 valued at $498,000 after purchasing an additional 1,804 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC raised its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 20.1% in the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 6,630 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,530,000 after buying an additional 1,111 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 76.1% in 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 position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter worth about $231,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2.7% during 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. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In other Royal Caribbean Cruises news, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 14,992 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.86, for a total transaction of $3,925,805.12. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 21,155 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,539,648.30. This trade represents a 41.48 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.68, for a total value of $5,005,260.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 185,021 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,491,190.28. This represents a 9.53 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In 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

Shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock opened at $207.87 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39, a current ratio of 0.17 and a quick ratio of 0.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $55.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.53. The business has a 50-day moving average of $237.20 and a 200 day moving average of $224.72. 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 earnings results 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 previous year, the business posted $1.25 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 12th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 1.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This is a boost from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.44%. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.06%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Argus lifted their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $280.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $232.00 to $272.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $283.00 to $304.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. 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 for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $279.58.

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.