Royal Caribbean Cruises Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:RCL)

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) was the target of unusually large options trading on Friday. Stock traders purchased 17,909 put options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 61% compared to the typical volume of 11,127 put options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on RCL. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $271.00 to $301.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Tigress Financial upped their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $270.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, BNP Paribas initiated coverage on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Thursday, March 27th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $262.00 price target for the company. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Royal Caribbean Cruises currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $279.58.

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Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance

NYSE RCL traded up $0.95 on Monday, hitting $178.88. 4,616,996 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,339,253. Royal Caribbean Cruises has a 1-year low of $125.06 and a 1-year high of $277.08. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $234.61 and a two-hundred day moving average of $225.22. The company has a current ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39. The company has a market cap of $48.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.73, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.26.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Royal Caribbean Cruises will post 14.9 EPS for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, February 12th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 1.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 4th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a $0.75 dividend. This is a boost from Royal Caribbean Cruises's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.68%. Royal Caribbean Cruises's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.06%.

Insider Transactions at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In other Royal Caribbean Cruises news, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 14,992 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 21,155 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,539,648.30. The trade was a 41.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 109,492 shares of company stock valued at $28,571,705 in the last 90 days. 7.95% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in RCL. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 618.8% in the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 115 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the third quarter worth $31,000. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. 87.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.