Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) Now Covered by Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL - Free Report) in a report issued on Monday morning, Marketbeat reports. The firm issued a hold rating and a $230.00 target price on the stock.

RCL has been the subject of several other research reports. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $204.00 to $272.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Tigress Financial increased their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $270.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Thursday, March 27th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $262.00 price objective for the company. Finally, 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 report on Monday, January 27th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $279.58.

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Royal Caribbean Cruises Trading Down 4.8 %

Royal Caribbean Cruises stock traded down $8.99 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $179.66. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,102,750 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,327,575. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39, a quick ratio of 0.15 and a current ratio of 0.17. The company has a 50 day moving average of $235.71 and a 200-day moving average of $224.38. Royal Caribbean Cruises has a one year low of $125.06 and a one year high of $277.08. The stock has a market cap of $48.35 billion, a PE ratio of 16.78, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.26.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 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 period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.25 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Royal Caribbean Cruises will post 14.9 EPS for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. This is a positive change from Royal Caribbean Cruises's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.67%. Royal Caribbean Cruises's payout ratio is presently 28.06%.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 143,214 shares of the company's stock, valued at $37,514,907.30. This represents a 28.83 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 14,992 shares of the firm's 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 transaction, the insider now owns 21,155 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,539,648.30. This trade represents a 41.48 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 109,492 shares of company stock worth $28,571,705 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 7.95% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 618.8% in the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 115 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter worth $36,000. 87.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.