Balboa Wealth Partners Makes New Investment in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Balboa Wealth Partners bought a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 1,376 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $317,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 511.0% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,157 shares of the company's stock worth $498,000 after acquiring an additional 1,804 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 1,111 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 12,530 shares during the period. 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 holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 291,027 shares of the company's stock worth $67,137,000 after acquiring an additional 7,740 shares during the period. 87.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Down 7.3 %

NYSE RCL traded down $16.07 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $203.34. 3,363,848 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,791,847. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.72 billion, a PE ratio of 19.02, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.53. The company has a current ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a fifty-two week low of $125.06 and a fifty-two week high of $277.08. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $241.13 and its 200-day simple moving average is $220.62.

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Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 last year, the business posted $1.25 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, February 12th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 1.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.48%. This is a positive change from Royal Caribbean Cruises's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. Royal Caribbean Cruises's payout ratio is currently 28.06%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 14,992 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.86, for a total value 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.95, for a total value of $15,193,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 143,214 shares in the company, valued at $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 sold a total of 109,492 shares of company stock worth $28,571,705 in the last three months. 7.95% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on RCL shares. Barclays lifted their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $287.00 to $308.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $253.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Macquarie increased their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com upgraded Royal Caribbean Cruises from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $232.00 to $272.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Royal Caribbean Cruises has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $283.53.

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.