Stifel Financial Corp Boosts Position in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Stifel Financial Corp grew its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL - Free Report) by 29.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 123,981 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 28,263 shares during the quarter. Stifel Financial Corp's holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $28,602,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Capital International Investors lifted its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 29,712,610 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,854,905,000 after purchasing an additional 278,860 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 8.0% during 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 during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 6.3% during 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 during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the fourth quarter worth approximately $707,833,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,519,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $350,418,000 after purchasing an additional 48,480 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.53% of the company's stock.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance

Shares of RCL stock traded up $1.50 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $217.81. The company had a trading volume of 3,226,440 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,310,092. The company has a market capitalization of $59.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.40, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.26. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $210.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $226.99. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 52-week low of $130.08 and a 52-week high of $277.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39, a current ratio of 0.17 and a quick ratio of 0.15.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) last issued 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. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a return on equity of 48.97% and a net margin of 17.46%. The firm had revenue of $4 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.02 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.77 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises declared that its board has approved 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 typically an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 4th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. This is an increase from Royal Caribbean Cruises's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.38%. Royal Caribbean Cruises's dividend payout ratio is presently 28.06%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Royal Caribbean Cruises news, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 14,992 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were 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 directly owns 21,155 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,539,648.30. The trade was a 41.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the firm's 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 owns 143,214 shares of the company's stock, valued at $37,514,907.30. This trade represents a 28.83 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 109,492 shares of company stock valued at $28,571,705 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 7.95% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

RCL has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research report on Monday, March 31st. They issued a "hold" rating and a $230.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $270.00 to $220.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Susquehanna reaffirmed a "positive" rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. Melius Research raised shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $283.00 to $304.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Royal Caribbean Cruises presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $272.85.

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.