Cerity Partners LLC Trims Stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Cerity Partners LLC reduced its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 6.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 29,735 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,077 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $6,860,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of RCL. M&T Bank Corp raised its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 5.5% in the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 12,703 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,254,000 after acquiring an additional 664 shares in the last quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 9.5% in the third quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,796 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,053,000 after purchasing an additional 505 shares during the period. Virtue Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the third quarter worth $210,000. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. lifted its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 33.3% during the third quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 300 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Finally, Anchor Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 175.0% during the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 319 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. 87.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, 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 transaction of $5,005,260.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 185,021 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,491,190.28. The trade was a 9.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.95, for a total transaction of $15,193,100.00. Following 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. Insiders sold 109,492 shares of company stock valued at $28,571,705 in the last quarter. 7.95% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock opened at $191.98 on Friday. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a twelve month low of $125.06 and a twelve month high of $277.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39. The company’s 50 day moving average is $224.70 and its 200 day moving average is $225.30. The company has a market cap of $51.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.26.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share 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 in the previous year, the business posted $1.25 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, February 12th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 1.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were given a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.56%. This is a boost from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.06%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

RCL has been the subject of several research reports. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $283.00 to $304.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $270.00 to $220.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $253.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Argus raised their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $280.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Loop Capital raised 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. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $276.95.

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.