Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Purchases 31,814 Shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL - Free Report) by 8.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 387,437 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 31,814 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned approximately 0.14% of Royal Caribbean Cruises worth $88,700,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 2,068,114 shares in the last quarter. D1 Capital Partners L.P. increased its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 3.8% in the third quarter. D1 Capital Partners L.P. now owns 1,570,262 shares of the company's stock worth $278,502,000 after purchasing an additional 58,159 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 3.3% during the 4th 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 period. National Pension Service raised its position 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 valued at $199,327,000 after purchasing an additional 502,349 shares during the period. Finally, Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN lifted its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN now owns 591,552 shares of the company's stock valued at $104,918,000 after buying an additional 13,520 shares in the last quarter. 87.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Remove Ads

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on RCL shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $204.00 to $272.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. UBS Group upped their price target 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. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $250.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, BNP Paribas assumed coverage on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Thursday, March 27th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $262.00 target price on the stock. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $279.58.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.95, for a total transaction of $15,193,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 143,214 shares in the company, valued at $37,514,907.30. The trade was a 28.83 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 14,992 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 109,492 shares of company stock valued at $28,571,705. 7.95% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Trading Up 1.2 %

NYSE:RCL traded up $2.43 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $207.87. 2,077,605 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,322,586. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.44, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.53. The firm's fifty day moving average is $237.20 and its 200-day moving average is $224.72. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 12-month low of $125.06 and a 12-month high of $277.08. 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 announced its 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 net margin of 17.46% and a return on equity of 48.97%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.25 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This is a positive change from Royal Caribbean Cruises's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Royal Caribbean Cruises's payout ratio is 28.06%.

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 repurchase up to 1.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.