Renaissance Group LLC Lowers Holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Renaissance Group LLC trimmed its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 28.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 148,446 shares of the company’s stock after selling 58,860 shares during the quarter. Royal Caribbean Cruises makes up approximately 1.4% of Renaissance Group LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 29th biggest position. Renaissance Group LLC owned 0.06% of Royal Caribbean Cruises worth $34,245,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in RCL. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. boosted its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 618.8% during the fourth quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 115 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 4th quarter worth $36,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. Finally, LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the third quarter valued at about $31,000. 87.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE RCL opened at $178.88 on Tuesday. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a fifty-two week low of $125.06 and a fifty-two week high of $277.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39, a quick ratio of 0.15 and a current ratio of 0.17. The company has a market cap of $48.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.73, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.26. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $233.45 and its 200-day moving average price is $225.27.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 last year, the business earned $1.25 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 4th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. This is a positive change from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.68%. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.06%.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented 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 research note on Monday, February 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $232.00 to $272.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Loop Capital upgraded shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Argus boosted their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $280.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. 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 data from MarketBeat.com, Royal Caribbean Cruises currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $279.58.

Insider Buying and Selling at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In other 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 185,021 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,491,190.28. This trade represents a 9.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.95, for a total transaction of $15,193,100.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 143,214 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,514,907.30. The trade was a 28.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 109,492 shares of company stock valued at $28,571,705 in the last three months. Company 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.