Prudential Financial Inc. Cuts Stock Position in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Prudential Financial Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 3.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 37,861 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,503 shares during the quarter. Prudential Financial Inc.’s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $8,734,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 8.0% in the 4th 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 last quarter. National Pension Service grew its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 138.9% in the fourth quarter. National Pension Service now owns 864,049 shares of the company’s stock worth $199,327,000 after acquiring an additional 502,349 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter worth approximately $69,556,000. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd raised its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2,042.8% during the fourth quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 122,887 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,349,000 after purchasing an additional 117,152 shares during the period. Finally, Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 138.2% in the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 161,835 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,703,000 after purchasing an additional 93,899 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In related news, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,500 shares of the 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 owns 185,021 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $47,491,190.28. This represents a 9.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 14,992 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 21,155 shares in the company, valued at $5,539,648.30. This represents a 41.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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. 7.95% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Trading Down 4.6 %

NYSE RCL opened at $207.35 on Friday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $238.63 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $223.72. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a one year low of $125.06 and a one year high of $277.08. The company has a market capitalization of $55.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39, a quick ratio of 0.15 and a current ratio of 0.17.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 17.46% and a return on equity of 48.97%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.25 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 1.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on RCL shares. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $253.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. 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. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $204.00 to $272.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $271.00 to $301.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $282.33.

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.