Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) Stock Price Expected to Rise, JPMorgan Chase & Co. Analyst Says

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) had its price objective raised by research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $368.00 to $371.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price target suggests a potential upside of 9.66% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other analysts also recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group dropped their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $353.00 to $304.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 12th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $324.00 to $361.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $275.00 to $334.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. Bank of America upped their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. Finally, William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Royal Caribbean Cruises presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $340.10.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Trading Up 4.2%

NYSE:RCL traded up $13.68 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $338.33. The stock had a trading volume of 1,106,927 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,561,162. The business’s 50 day moving average is $282.50 and its 200-day moving average is $303.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.18. The company has a market cap of $92.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.69, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.91. Royal Caribbean Cruises has a one year low of $164.01 and a one year high of $366.50.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $2.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.80. The company had revenue of $4.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.28 billion. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a net margin of 23.80% and a return on equity of 45.06%. The firm’s revenue was up 13.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.63 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Royal Caribbean Cruises will post 14.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 10th that allows the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 2.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Royal Caribbean Cruises

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in RCL. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the second quarter worth $1,021,893,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 3.2% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 29,604,177 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,270,252,000 after buying an additional 929,414 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 135.0% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,306,784 shares of the company’s stock worth $366,925,000 after purchasing an additional 750,723 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 163.7% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,101,544 shares of the company’s stock worth $356,515,000 after purchasing an additional 683,896 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc increased its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 560.9% during the 3rd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 676,645 shares of the company’s stock valued at $218,949,000 after purchasing an additional 574,256 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Company Profile

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE: RCL), operating as part of the Royal Caribbean Group, is a global cruise company that develops, markets and operates passenger cruise ships. The company operates multiple consumer-facing cruise brands that offer short- and long-duration itineraries and a range of onboard experiences. Its core activities include itineraries and voyage operations, guest services and hospitality, onboard food and beverage, entertainment and recreation programming, and the commercial activities needed to sell and support cruises through both direct and travel‑agent channels.

Royal Caribbean’s ships serve a broad set of geographies worldwide, regularly deploying vessels in the Caribbean, North America (including Alaska), Europe, Asia, Australia and South America.