Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI Acquires New Position in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI bought a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 1,798 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $415,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Plato Investment Management Ltd acquired a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.68, for a total transaction of $5,005,260.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 185,021 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $47,491,190.28. This represents a 9.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Naftali Holtz sold 17,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.62, for a total value of $4,447,540.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 42,127 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,021,265.74. This represents a 28.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 109,492 shares of company stock worth $28,571,705. Corporate insiders own 7.95% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $290.00 price target for the company. Argus upped their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $280.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Mizuho reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $253.00 price target (down from $255.00) on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Barclays upped their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $287.00 to $308.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $271.00 to $301.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Royal Caribbean Cruises has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $283.53.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance

Shares of RCL opened at $208.01 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $55.98 billion, a PE ratio of 19.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.53. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 52-week low of $125.06 and a 52-week high of $277.08. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $241.64 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $219.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39, a quick ratio of 0.15 and a current ratio of 0.17.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last released its 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 net margin of 17.46% and a return on equity of 48.97%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.25 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan 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 plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. This is an increase 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 1.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio is 28.06%.

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.