Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Grows Stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA grew its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 16.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 145,847 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 20,133 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $33,645,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of RCL. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 4th quarter worth about $707,833,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 8.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,072,316 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,476,003,000 after buying an additional 2,068,114 shares during the period. National Pension Service boosted its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 138.9% during the 4th quarter. National Pension Service now owns 864,049 shares of the company’s stock valued at $199,327,000 after acquiring an additional 502,349 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 4th quarter valued at $69,556,000. Finally, AustralianSuper Pty Ltd increased its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2,042.8% in the fourth quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 122,887 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,349,000 after purchasing an additional 117,152 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Down 4.6 %

NYSE:RCL opened at $207.35 on Monday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $238.63 and its two-hundred day moving average is $224.15. The company has a market cap of $55.80 billion, a PE ratio of 19.40, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.53. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a twelve month low of $125.06 and a twelve month high of $277.08. The company has a current ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39.

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

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.45%. This is a boost from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.06%.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on RCL. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $232.00 to $272.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $250.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $283.00 to $304.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Royal Caribbean Cruises has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $282.33.

Insider Activity at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In other Royal Caribbean Cruises news, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,500 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.95, for a total transaction of $15,193,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 143,214 shares in the company, valued at $37,514,907.30. The trade was a 28.83 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 109,492 shares of company stock worth $28,571,705 over the last quarter. Insiders own 7.95% of the company’s stock.

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.