Zacks Research Has Bullish Forecast for RCL Q2 Earnings

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL - Free Report) - Analysts at Zacks Research raised their Q2 2025 earnings estimates for Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, February 11th. Zacks Research analyst M. Kaushik now expects that the company will post earnings per share of $3.81 for the quarter, up from their prior forecast of $3.20. The consensus estimate for Royal Caribbean Cruises' current full-year earnings is $14.96 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Royal Caribbean Cruises' Q3 2025 earnings at $5.69 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $2.50 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $14.43 EPS.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 17.46% and a return on equity of 48.97%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.25 EPS.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $232.00 to $272.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Argus lifted their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $280.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Loop Capital began coverage on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. They set a "hold" rating and a $250.00 price target on the stock. Macquarie lifted their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $284.12.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance

NYSE:RCL traded down $1.47 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $261.62. The stock had a trading volume of 1,894,558 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,244,509. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $243.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $210.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.35 billion, a PE ratio of 24.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 2.59. 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 has a 12 month low of $113.10 and a 12 month high of $277.08.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.15%. This is a boost from Royal Caribbean Cruises's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. Royal Caribbean Cruises's payout ratio is presently 20.58%.

Royal Caribbean Cruises declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, February 12th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 1.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In related news, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,500 shares of the company'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 transaction 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. This represents a 9.53 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Harri U. Kulovaara sold 3,256 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.62, for a total transaction of $763,922.72. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 22,348 shares in the company, valued at $5,243,287.76. The trade was a 12.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 162,109 shares of company stock worth $38,919,868 over the last three months. 7.95% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Royal Caribbean Cruises

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Plato Investment Management Ltd purchased a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. lifted its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 618.8% in the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 115 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 257.4% in the 3rd quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 168 shares of the company's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LRI Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. 87.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Royal Caribbean Cruises

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.