Two Sigma Securities LLC Sells 18,516 Shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Two Sigma Securities LLC reduced its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL - Free Report) by 90.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,946 shares of the company's stock after selling 18,516 shares during the quarter. Two Sigma Securities LLC's holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $449,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in RCL. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 511.0% in the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,157 shares of the company's stock valued at $498,000 after purchasing an additional 1,804 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC raised its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 20.1% in the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 6,630 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,530,000 after purchasing an additional 1,111 shares during the period. Lorne Steinberg Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the fourth quarter valued at about $231,000. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 6.3% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,969,532 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,373,856,000 after purchasing an additional 353,893 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 291,027 shares of the company's stock valued at $67,137,000 after purchasing an additional 7,740 shares during the period. 87.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:RCL traded up $0.18 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $216.49. 4,247,182 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,311,707. The company has a market capitalization of $58.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.26. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 1-year low of $130.08 and a 1-year high of $277.08. The business's 50 day moving average is $210.39 and its 200-day moving average is $226.91. The company has a quick ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $4 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.02 billion. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a return on equity of 48.97% and a net margin of 17.46%. Royal Caribbean Cruises's quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.77 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 1.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 4th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.39%. This is an increase from Royal Caribbean Cruises's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. Royal Caribbean Cruises's dividend payout ratio is presently 28.06%.

Insider Activity at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In other Royal Caribbean Cruises news, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 143,214 shares in the company, 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 is accessible through this link. 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 value of $3,925,805.12. Following the sale, the insider now owns 21,155 shares of the company's stock, 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 worth $28,571,705 over the last three months. Company insiders own 7.95% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on RCL. Loop Capital raised shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $250.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $232.00 to $272.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Citigroup lifted 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 report on Wednesday, January 29th. Northcoast Research initiated coverage on Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Friday. They issued a "buy" rating and a $279.00 price target for the company. Finally, Susquehanna reiterated a "positive" rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Royal Caribbean Cruises has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $272.85.

Royal Caribbean Cruises 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.