Gryphon Financial Partners LLC Boosts Stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Gryphon Financial Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 4.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 2,267 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC’s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $523,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Plato Investment Management Ltd purchased a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 4th quarter valued at $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the director now owns 185,021 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $47,491,190.28. The trade was a 9.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 14,992 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.86, for a total transaction of $3,925,805.12. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 21,155 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,539,648.30. This represents a 41.48 % 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 valued at $28,571,705 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 7.95% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on RCL. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $253.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Loop Capital initiated coverage on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $250.00 price objective on the stock. Macquarie lifted their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $283.00 to $304.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Royal Caribbean Cruises has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $284.12.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Down 2.2 %

Shares of NYSE:RCL opened at $240.71 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $64.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.52, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.59. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $244.80 and its 200-day simple moving average is $216.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a fifty-two week low of $124.24 and a fifty-two week high of $277.08.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last issued its earnings results 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 in the prior year, the business earned $1.25 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 1.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $0.75 dividend. This is an increase from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.25%. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s payout ratio is presently 28.06%.

About Royal Caribbean Cruises

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.