Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) has earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the nineteen brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and sixteen have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $279.58.

RCL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $253.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. BNP Paribas started coverage on Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Thursday, March 27th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $262.00 target price for the company. Citigroup upped their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $283.00 to $304.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Loop Capital raised shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 target price on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE RCL opened at $205.60 on Tuesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $237.90 and a 200 day simple moving average of $224.44. The company has a current ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.23, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.53. Royal Caribbean Cruises has a one year low of $125.06 and a one year high of $277.08.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) 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 posted $1.25 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Royal Caribbean Cruises will post 14.9 EPS for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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 represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.46%. This is a positive change from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.06%.

Royal Caribbean Cruises declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 12th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 1.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In other Royal Caribbean Cruises news, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the business’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 directly owns 143,214 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,514,907.30. The trade was a 28.83 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 185,021 shares in the company, valued at $47,491,190.28. This trade represents a 9.53 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 109,492 shares of company stock worth $28,571,705 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 7.95% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Royal Caribbean Cruises

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC boosted its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 2,036 shares of the company’s stock worth $470,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Ostrum Asset Management boosted its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Ostrum Asset Management now owns 11,610 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,678,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew 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 worth $630,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Hemington Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 533 shares of the company’s stock valued at $123,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Verdence Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,358 shares of the company’s stock valued at $313,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Company 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.