Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) Shares Sold by AdvisorShares Investments LLC

AdvisorShares Investments LLC lowered its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 9.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,000 shares of the company’s stock after selling 100 shares during the period. AdvisorShares Investments LLC’s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $231,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC increased its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 2,036 shares of the company’s stock valued at $470,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. Ostrum Asset Management lifted its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Ostrum Asset Management now owns 11,610 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,678,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its stake 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 valued at $630,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Hemington Wealth Management boosted its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 9.0% during the fourth quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 533 shares of the company’s stock valued at $123,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Verdence Capital Advisors LLC grew 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 buying an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance

Shares of NYSE RCL opened at $216.49 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $210.39 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $226.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.25, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.26. 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 twelve month low of $130.08 and a twelve month high of $277.08.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.71 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.18. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a net margin of 17.46% and a return on equity of 48.97%. The company had revenue of $4 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.02 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.77 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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 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 was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.39%. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio is 28.06%.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 1.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Loop Capital upgraded 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. Morgan Stanley reduced 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, April 10th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Monday, March 31st. They set a “hold” rating and a $230.00 price target on the stock. Argus increased 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. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $310.00 to $265.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $272.85.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Naftali Holtz sold 17,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $11,021,265.74. This represents a 28.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 14,992 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.86, for a total transaction of $3,925,805.12. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 21,155 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,539,648.30. This trade represents a 41.48 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 109,492 shares of company stock worth $28,571,705. 7.95% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.