Retirement Systems of Alabama Reduces Stock Position in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Retirement Systems of Alabama lessened its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL - Free Report) by 7.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 257,578 shares of the company's stock after selling 20,167 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned 0.10% of Royal Caribbean Cruises worth $45,684,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Plato Investment Management Ltd bought a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. boosted its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 257.4% during the third quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 168 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC bought a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, LRI Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Institutional investors own 87.53% of the company's stock.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Performance

Shares of RCL stock traded up $1.02 during trading on Friday, reaching $245.17. 1,931,702 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,326,271. The firm's 50-day moving average is $222.37 and its 200 day moving average is $181.90. The company has a market capitalization of $65.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.20, a PEG ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 2.59. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 1 year low of $113.10 and a 1 year high of $258.70. The company has a current ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.63.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $5.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.05 by $0.15. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a return on equity of 52.92% and a net margin of 16.21%. The firm had revenue of $4.89 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.89 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.85 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 11.65 EPS for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 27th will be paid a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 27th. Royal Caribbean Cruises's dividend payout ratio is presently 22.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Harri U. Kulovaara sold 3,256 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.62, for a total value of $763,922.72. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 22,348 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,243,287.76. This represents a 12.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Richard D. Fain sold 25,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.02, for a total value of $5,250,500.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 204,521 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,953,500.42. This represents a 10.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 404,332 shares of company stock worth $94,299,521. Corporate insiders own 7.95% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on RCL shares. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $204.00 to $272.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. Macquarie boosted their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $189.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $290.00 price objective on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $245.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $257.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $239.75.

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.