Groupama Asset Managment Acquires New Position in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Groupama Asset Managment bought a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 4,819 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,122,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of RCL. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter valued at about $707,833,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 8.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,072,316 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,476,003,000 after acquiring an additional 2,068,114 shares during the last quarter. National Pension Service boosted 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 valued at $199,327,000 after acquiring an additional 502,349 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 6.3% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,969,532 shares of the company's stock worth $1,373,856,000 after acquiring an additional 353,893 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 4th quarter worth approximately $69,556,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.53% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 143,214 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,514,907.30. This represents a 28.83 % decrease in their position. 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 Royal Caribbean Cruises stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.62, for a total value of $4,447,540.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 42,127 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,021,265.74. This represents a 28.75 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 109,492 shares of company stock worth $28,571,705. Insiders own 7.95% of the company's stock.

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Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance

NYSE RCL traded down $11.05 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $177.60. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,319,543 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,328,502. The company has a market capitalization of $47.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.61, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.26. The company has a quick ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 1 year low of $125.06 and a 1 year high of $277.08. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $234.61 and its 200-day moving average price is $224.43.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 business earned $1.25 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 1.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The company 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 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. Royal Caribbean Cruises's dividend payout ratio is currently 28.06%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on RCL. BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $262.00 price objective on the stock. Loop Capital raised Royal Caribbean Cruises from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $250.00 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group lifted their price objective 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. Barclays boosted 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on 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. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Royal Caribbean Cruises currently has an average 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.