Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co Takes Position in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co bought a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 12,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,884,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of RCL. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings 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 worth $6,476,003,000 after buying an additional 2,068,114 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of 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 valued at $1,373,856,000 after acquiring an additional 353,893 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 4th quarter worth approximately $707,833,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,519,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $350,418,000 after purchasing an additional 48,480 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Pension Service grew its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 138.9% during the fourth quarter. National Pension Service now owns 864,049 shares of the company's stock valued at $199,327,000 after purchasing an additional 502,349 shares during the period. 87.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In other news, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 14,992 shares of the business'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 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. The trade was a 41.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 143,214 shares of the company's stock, valued at $37,514,907.30. The trade was a 28.83 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 109,492 shares of company stock worth $28,571,705. Company insiders own 7.95% of the company's stock.

Remove Ads

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on RCL shares. Loop Capital raised Royal Caribbean Cruises from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $250.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research report on Monday, March 31st. They set a "hold" rating and a $230.00 target price for the company. Susquehanna restated a "positive" rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced 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 research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Macquarie increased their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Royal Caribbean Cruises currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $276.95.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance

NYSE RCL traded down $3.25 on Friday, reaching $189.26. 1,283,177 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,357,561. The stock has a market cap of $50.94 billion, a PE ratio of 17.70, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.26. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 12 month low of $125.06 and a 12 month high of $277.08. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $226.14 and a 200 day simple moving average of $225.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39, a current ratio of 0.17 and a quick ratio of 0.15.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) last posted 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 net margin of 17.46% and a return on equity of 48.97%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.25 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict 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 program on Wednesday, February 12th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to buy up to 1.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th were paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.59%. This is an increase from Royal Caribbean Cruises's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. Royal Caribbean Cruises's dividend payout ratio is 28.06%.

About Royal Caribbean Cruises

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.