Capital International Investors Purchases 278,860 Shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Capital International Investors grew its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 0.9% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 29,712,610 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 278,860 shares during the period. Royal Caribbean Cruises comprises 1.3% of Capital International Investors’ investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. Capital International Investors owned approximately 0.11% of Royal Caribbean Cruises worth $6,854,905,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. raised its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 33.3% in the 3rd quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 300 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 175.0% in the third quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 319 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 203 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the third quarter valued at approximately $7,107,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the third quarter valued at approximately $109,000. Finally, American Trust purchased a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the third quarter worth approximately $204,000. Institutional investors own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.95, for a total value of $15,193,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 143,214 shares in the company, valued at $37,514,907.30. This trade represents a 28.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the director now owns 185,021 shares in the company, valued at $47,491,190.28. This trade represents a 9.53 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 109,492 shares of company stock worth $28,571,705. Corporate insiders own 7.95% of the company’s stock.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Performance

NYSE RCL opened at $192.52 on Friday. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a twelve month low of $127.10 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 firm has a market cap of $51.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.26. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $218.83 and a 200-day moving average price of $225.35.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.13. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a net margin of 17.46% and a return on equity of 48.97%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.25 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. 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, February 12th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 1.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on RCL shares. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Monday, March 31st. They set a “hold” rating and a $230.00 target price for the company. UBS Group upped their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $271.00 to $301.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $310.00 to $265.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $253.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $270.00 to $220.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $276.95.

Royal Caribbean Cruises 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.