Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) Hits New 12-Month Low on Analyst Downgrade

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) reached a new 52-week low on Thursday after Truist Financial lowered their price target on the stock from $318.00 to $297.00. Truist Financial currently has a hold rating on the stock. Royal Caribbean Cruises traded as low as $232.10 and last traded at $254.1580, with a volume of 6640933 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $247.20.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on RCL. Citigroup dropped their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $377.00 to $348.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $330.00 to $310.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $296.00 price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $380.00 price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Royal Caribbean Cruises currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $345.63.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 356,026 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $318.39, for a total transaction of $113,355,118.14. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 16,681,386 shares in the company, valued at $5,311,186,488.54. This represents a 2.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 1,135,858 shares of company stock worth $358,605,301. 6.44% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Key Royal Caribbean Cruises News

Here are the key news stories impacting Royal Caribbean Cruises this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Royal Caribbean reported a strong Q1 2026 with $4.50 billion in revenue, 11% year-over-year growth, and GAAP EPS of $3.48, topping guidance. The company also said demand remains resilient and that WAVE season bookings hit a record, which supports the bullish case for future cruise pricing and occupancy. Article
• Neutral Sentiment: The company reiterated roughly 10% revenue growth and higher net yields, but also pointed to geopolitical and environmental headwinds, suggesting execution remains solid while risks stay elevated. Article
• Negative Sentiment: Truist Financial lowered its price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises (RCL) from $318 to $297 and kept a hold rating, signaling less upside than before despite still being above the current share price. Article
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research downgraded RCL from hold to strong sell, and separately cut estimates for Q3 2026, Q4 2026, FY2026, and Q1 2027 earnings, adding to near-term pressure on the stock. Article
• Negative Sentiment: News that Mexico rejected Royal Caribbean’s Perfect Day water park project adds another regulatory setback, which could weigh on expansion plans and investor confidence. Article

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Royal Caribbean Cruises

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in RCL. Capital International Investors lifted its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 9.8% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 36,165,358 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,088,156,000 after purchasing an additional 3,215,382 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 4th quarter worth $456,752,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 25,747.4% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,202,161 shares of the company’s stock worth $335,307,000 after purchasing an additional 1,197,510 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 20,176,544 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,627,669,000 after purchasing an additional 920,042 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 135.0% during the 4th 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. 87.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Down 1.1%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 0.17 and a current ratio of 0.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $69.03 billion, a PE ratio of 15.70, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.77. The business has a 50 day moving average of $269.55 and a two-hundred day moving average of $281.69.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $3.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.20 by $0.40. The firm had revenue of $4.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.46 billion. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a return on equity of 45.25% and a net margin of 24.36%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.71 EPS. Royal Caribbean Cruises has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 3.830-3.930 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 17.100-17.500 EPS. Analysts predict that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 17.27 EPS for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 3rd will be paid a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 3rd. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.61%.

About Royal Caribbean Cruises

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.