Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) Rating Increased to Buy at Loop Capital

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) was upgraded by stock analysts at Loop Capital from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report issued on Wednesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has a $250.00 target price on the stock. Loop Capital's price target points to a potential upside of 17.05% from the company's current price.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on RCL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $253.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com raised shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $232.00 to $272.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Macquarie lifted their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Royal Caribbean Cruises currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $283.53.

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Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE RCL traded down $1.95 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $213.59. 4,740,051 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,632,598. The firm has a market cap of $57.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.98, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.53. Royal Caribbean Cruises has a twelve month low of $125.06 and a twelve month high of $277.08. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $243.51 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $218.26. 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 issued its quarterly earnings data 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 quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.25 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Royal Caribbean Cruises will post 14.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 12th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 1.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In other Royal Caribbean Cruises news, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,500 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.68, for a total value of $5,005,260.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 185,021 shares of the company's stock, valued at $47,491,190.28. The trade was a 9.53 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 14,992 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were 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 directly owns 21,155 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,539,648.30. This represents a 41.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 109,492 shares of company stock worth $28,571,705. Company insiders own 7.95% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Royal Caribbean Cruises

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Capital International Investors grew its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 29,712,610 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,854,905,000 after acquiring an additional 278,860 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position 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 valued at $6,476,003,000 after acquiring an additional 2,068,114 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 6.3% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,969,532 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,373,856,000 after acquiring an additional 353,893 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 4th quarter valued at about $707,833,000. Finally, DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main grew its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 24.0% in the 4th quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 2,653,258 shares of the company's stock valued at $612,080,000 after acquiring an additional 513,702 shares in the last quarter. 87.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.