Tredje AP fonden Sells 18,966 Shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Tredje AP fonden lessened its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL - Free Report) by 50.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 18,966 shares of the company's stock after selling 18,966 shares during the quarter. Tredje AP fonden's holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $4,375,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. D1 Capital Partners L.P. grew its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. D1 Capital Partners L.P. now owns 1,570,262 shares of the company's stock valued at $278,502,000 after buying an additional 58,159 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 3.3% in 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 acquiring an additional 48,480 shares during the last quarter. National Pension Service boosted its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 138.9% in the fourth quarter. National Pension Service now owns 864,049 shares of the company's stock valued at $199,327,000 after acquiring an additional 502,349 shares during the last quarter. Swiss National Bank increased its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 725,638 shares of the company's stock valued at $128,699,000 after purchasing an additional 3,800 shares during the period. Finally, Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN raised its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN now owns 591,552 shares of the company's stock worth $104,918,000 after purchasing an additional 13,520 shares during the last quarter. 87.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Down 7.3 %

Shares of NYSE:RCL traded down $16.07 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $203.34. 3,363,403 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,271,092. 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 Ltd. has a 12 month low of $125.06 and a 12 month high of $277.08. The company has a market cap of $54.72 billion, a PE ratio of 19.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.53. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $241.13 and a 200-day moving average price of $220.62.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.13. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a return on equity of 48.97% and a net margin of 17.46%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.25 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Investors 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.48%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. Royal Caribbean Cruises's dividend payout ratio is presently 28.06%.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 1.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In related news, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.95, for a total transaction 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 trade represents a 28.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Naftali Holtz sold 17,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.62, for a total transaction of $4,447,540.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 42,127 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,021,265.74. This trade represents a 28.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 109,492 shares of company stock worth $28,571,705. Corporate insiders own 7.95% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Susquehanna decreased their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $305.00 to $295.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Macquarie increased their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $283.00 to $304.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Tigress Financial raised their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $270.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Loop Capital upgraded Royal Caribbean Cruises from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $250.00 target price for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $283.53.

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.