Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL - Free Report) by 1.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 133,992 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,685 shares during the quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina's holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $30,911,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake 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 buying an additional 2,068,114 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings 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 worth $1,373,856,000 after purchasing an additional 353,893 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter worth about $707,833,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 3.3% in the 4th 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 period. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 11.8% during the 4th quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 938,743 shares of the company's stock worth $216,559,000 after buying an additional 98,900 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.53% of the company's stock.
Insider Buying and Selling
In related news, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,500 shares of the business's 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 sale, the director now directly owns 185,021 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,491,190.28. The trade was a 9.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 14,992 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the insider now owns 21,155 shares in the company, 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. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 109,492 shares of company stock valued at $28,571,705. Company insiders own 7.95% of the company's stock.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Citigroup lifted their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $283.00 to $304.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Tigress Financial upped their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $270.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $287.00 to $308.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. BNP Paribas started coverage on Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Thursday, March 27th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $262.00 price target on the stock. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $271.00 to $301.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Royal Caribbean Cruises has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $276.95.
Check Out Our Latest Analysis on RCL
Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Down 0.0 %
Shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock traded down $0.09 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $193.28. 644,101 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,847,042. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a fifty-two week low of $126.65 and a fifty-two week high of $277.08. The stock has a market cap of $52.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.08, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.26. The company has a 50 day moving average of $221.66 and a two-hundred day moving average of $225.48. The company has a current ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39.
Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 prior year, the company posted $1.25 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Royal Caribbean Cruises declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to repurchase 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 stock is undervalued.
Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th were given a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.55%. This is a positive change from Royal Caribbean Cruises's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Royal Caribbean Cruises's payout ratio is 28.06%.
About Royal Caribbean Cruises
(
Free Report)
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.
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