Capital Group Investment Management PTE. LTD. Boosts Position in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Capital Group Investment Management PTE. LTD. grew its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL - Free Report) by 13.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 33,376 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,849 shares during the quarter. Royal Caribbean Cruises makes up approximately 1.5% of Capital Group Investment Management PTE. LTD.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Capital Group Investment Management PTE. LTD.'s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $7,700,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of RCL. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 2,036 shares of the company's stock worth $470,000 after buying an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,730 shares of the company's stock valued at $630,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Hemington Wealth Management grew its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 9.0% during the 4th quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 533 shares of the company's stock worth $123,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,358 shares of the company's stock worth $313,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,360 shares of the company's stock valued at $544,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.53% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on RCL shares. Barclays lowered their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $308.00 to $249.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $310.00 to $265.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Loop Capital raised shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $250.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Tigress Financial raised their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $270.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $305.00 to $245.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $272.53.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now 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 legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 14,992 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 21,155 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,539,648.30. The trade was a 41.48 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 109,492 shares of company stock valued at $28,571,705. Corporate insiders own 7.95% of the company's stock.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Trading Up 4.7 %

NYSE:RCL traded up $9.43 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $209.10. 1,545,961 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,324,903. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $215.02 and a 200 day simple moving average of $226.09. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a one year low of $130.08 and a one year high of $277.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $56.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.26. 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 issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.13. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a return on equity of 48.97% and a net margin of 17.46%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.25 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 4th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were given a $0.75 dividend. This is a positive change from Royal Caribbean Cruises's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. Royal Caribbean Cruises's dividend payout ratio is presently 28.06%.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 1.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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.