Thomas J. Herzfeld Advisors Inc. Has $4.08 Million Stock Position in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Thomas J. Herzfeld Advisors Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL - Free Report) by 27.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 17,666 shares of the company's stock after selling 6,682 shares during the period. Royal Caribbean Cruises comprises approximately 1.3% of Thomas J. Herzfeld Advisors Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Thomas J. Herzfeld Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $4,075,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

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

Remove Ads

Royal Caribbean Cruises Trading Down 5.9 %

Shares of RCL stock traded down $11.05 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $177.60. 5,308,201 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,335,869. The company has a quick ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.80 billion, a PE ratio of 16.61, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.26. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 1-year low of $125.06 and a 1-year high of $277.08. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $235.71 and a 200 day moving average price of $224.38.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 prior year, the company posted $1.25 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, February 12th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to buy up to 1.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. Royal Caribbean Cruises's dividend payout ratio is presently 28.06%.

Insider Transactions at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In other news, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the company'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 in the company, valued at approximately $37,514,907.30. This represents a 28.83 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $47,491,190.28. The trade was a 9.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on RCL. Mizuho restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $253.00 price target (down from $255.00) on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Argus increased their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $280.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Susquehanna restated a "positive" rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $271.00 to $301.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $287.00 to $308.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $279.58.

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.