Manchester Capital Management LLC Acquires 775 Shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Manchester Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 71.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,864 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 775 shares during the period. Manchester Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $430,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Plato Investment Management Ltd bought a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the third quarter valued at $26,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the third quarter valued at $27,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. boosted its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 257.4% in the third quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 168 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC bought a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the third quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. 87.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on RCL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $253.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Barclays lifted their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $287.00 to $308.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $250.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Loop Capital initiated coverage on Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $250.00 target price for the company. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $204.00 to $272.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $284.12.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Performance

Shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock opened at $262.99 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $70.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 2.59. 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 Ltd. has a 12 month low of $113.10 and a 12 month high of $277.08. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $243.47 and its 200-day moving average price is $208.02.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 last year, the company earned $1.25 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued 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 is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.14%. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s payout ratio is 20.58%.

Royal Caribbean Cruises declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, February 12th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 1.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In other news, Director Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 230,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.62, for a total value of $53,732,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 18,556,860 shares in the company, valued at $4,335,253,633.20. The trade was a 1.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,500 shares of the business’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 sale, the director now owns 185,021 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $47,491,190.28. This trade represents a 9.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 392,109 shares of company stock valued at $92,652,468. 7.95% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.