KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 82,283 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,027,000.
Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. National Pension Service increased its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 138.9% during the 4th quarter. National Pension Service now owns 864,049 shares of the company's stock worth $199,327,000 after purchasing an additional 502,349 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter valued at $69,556,000. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd increased its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2,042.8% in the fourth quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 122,887 shares of the company's stock worth $28,349,000 after buying an additional 117,152 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 138.2% in the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 161,835 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,703,000 after buying an additional 93,899 shares during the period. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund bought a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the third quarter valued at $14,544,000. Institutional investors own 87.53% of the company's stock.
Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance
Royal Caribbean Cruises stock traded down $9.89 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $207.35. 2,547,926 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,316,863. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39, a quick ratio of 0.15 and a current ratio of 0.17. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a one year low of $125.06 and a one year high of $277.08. The stock has a market cap of $55.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.53. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $238.63 and a 200-day moving average price of $223.27.
Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 in the prior year, the company posted $1.25 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Royal Caribbean Cruises declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program 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 programs are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.
Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.45%. This is a boost from Royal Caribbean Cruises's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. Royal Caribbean Cruises's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.06%.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In other news, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.68, for a total value of $5,005,260.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 185,021 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,491,190.28. The trade was a 9.53 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Naftali Holtz sold 17,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.62, for a total transaction of $4,447,540.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 42,127 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,021,265.74. This represents a 28.75 % 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 valued at $28,571,705 over the last quarter. 7.95% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on RCL shares. Barclays lifted their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $287.00 to $308.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Macquarie boosted their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $283.00 to $304.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Tigress Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $270.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $253.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Royal Caribbean Cruises presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $282.33.
View Our Latest Stock Analysis on Royal Caribbean Cruises
Royal Caribbean Cruises Profile
(
Free Report)
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.
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