Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC Has $3.73 Million Position in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 27.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 16,147 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,167 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $3,725,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Plato Investment Management Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. 87.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE RCL opened at $208.01 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $241.64 and its 200 day simple moving average is $219.18. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a fifty-two week low of $125.06 and a fifty-two week high of $277.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.46, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39, a current ratio of 0.17 and a quick ratio of 0.15.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share 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 period last year, the company earned $1.25 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current year.

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

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This is an increase from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In other Royal Caribbean Cruises news, CFO Naftali Holtz sold 17,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.62, for a total value of $4,447,540.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 42,127 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,021,265.74. This represents a 28.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,500 shares of the company’s 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $47,491,190.28. The trade was a 9.53 % 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 valued at $28,571,705. Corporate insiders own 7.95% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Argus lifted their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $280.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $250.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $204.00 to $272.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. Finally, Macquarie boosted their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $283.53.

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.