HighPoint Advisor Group LLC Cuts Stock Position in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

HighPoint Advisor Group LLC decreased its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL - Free Report) by 20.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 16,781 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,292 shares during the quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC's holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $3,871,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of RCL. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. boosted its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 618.8% during the fourth quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 115 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 99 shares during the period. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, ORG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter worth approximately $40,000. 87.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on RCL shares. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $262.00 price objective on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Monday. They set a "hold" rating and a $230.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $253.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. UBS Group boosted their target price 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. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $250.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $279.58.

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Insider Transactions at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In other news, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 14,992 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.86, for a total transaction of $3,925,805.12. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 21,155 shares in the company, valued at $5,539,648.30. This represents a 41.48 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly 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. Insiders have sold a total of 109,492 shares of company stock worth $28,571,705 in the last three months. Company insiders own 7.95% of the company's stock.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Trading Up 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE RCL traded up $4.05 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $212.17. 2,124,225 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,310,217. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 52-week low of $125.06 and a 52-week high of $277.08. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $237.20 and a 200-day moving average price of $224.72. The company has a market capitalization of $57.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.85, 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 (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share 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 period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.25 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.41%. This is an increase from Royal Caribbean Cruises's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Royal Caribbean Cruises's dividend payout ratio is currently 28.06%.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its Board of Directors 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 buy up to 1.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

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.