Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) Shares Purchased by Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC

Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC raised its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 30.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,474 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,893 shares during the period. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC’s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $2,878,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Glenmede Trust Co. NA boosted its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 6,080 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,078,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 14.8% during the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 9,327 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,654,000 after acquiring an additional 1,200 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 15.6% during the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 854 shares of the company’s stock worth $151,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 3rd quarter worth about $73,000. Finally, Atom Investors LP lifted its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 28.7% in the 3rd quarter. Atom Investors LP now owns 1,892 shares of the company’s stock valued at $336,000 after purchasing an additional 422 shares during the last quarter. 87.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on RCL. Tigress Financial raised their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $270.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Susquehanna reaffirmed a “positive” rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. Macquarie boosted their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Argus raised their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $280.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Mizuho reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $253.00 price objective (down previously from $255.00) on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $279.58.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 14,992 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.86, for a total value of $3,925,805.12. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 21,155 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,539,648.30. This trade represents a 41.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.95, for a total value 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. This represents a 28.83 % 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.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE RCL opened at $205.60 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $237.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $224.44. The stock 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. The company has a quick ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 52-week low of $125.06 and a 52-week high of $277.08.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 period in the previous year, the company posted $1.25 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. This is a positive change 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 yield of 1.46%. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.06%.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, February 12th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 1.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.