Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) Director Sells $31,802,595.18 in Stock

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) Director Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 101,902 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $312.09, for a total value of $31,802,595.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 17,681,065 shares in the company, valued at $5,518,083,575.85. The trade was a 0.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, February 18th, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 104,540 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $321.64, for a total value of $33,624,245.60.
• On Tuesday, February 17th, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 180,000 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $325.09, for a total value of $58,516,200.00.
• On Friday, February 13th, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 100,000 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $326.58, for a total value of $32,658,000.00.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of RCL opened at $315.34 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $85.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 1.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77, a current ratio of 0.18 and a quick ratio of 0.16. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 1 year low of $164.01 and a 1 year high of $366.50. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $302.05 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $303.06.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.80. The firm had revenue of $4.26 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.28 billion. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a net margin of 23.80% and a return on equity of 45.06%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 13.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.63 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be given a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. This is a positive change from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.62%.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, December 10th that permits the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 2.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Tigress Financial lifted their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $415.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $380.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $368.00 to $371.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $380.00 target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Friday, January 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $348.29.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC now owns 2,485 shares of the company’s stock worth $693,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. AlphaStar Capital Management LLC raised its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. AlphaStar Capital Management LLC now owns 779 shares of the company’s stock worth $217,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 1,208 shares of the company’s stock worth $337,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Prosperity Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 0.5% during the second quarter. Prosperity Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,936 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,172,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the period. Finally, Westside Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 29.1% during the second quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 142 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. 87.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Royal Caribbean Cruises

Here are the key news stories impacting Royal Caribbean Cruises this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Company raised its quarterly dividend to $1.50 (annualized $6.00); ex‑dividend/record/pay dates disclosed — a cash return boost that supports shareholder sentiment. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Board-authorized $2.0 billion share buyback program—management signaling conviction in long‑term value, which can support the stock and EPS. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Board upgrade — appointment of Christopher J. Wiernicki adds maritime/regulatory expertise that could improve governance and operational oversight. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst coverage remains constructive: several firms have raised targets or reiterated buys (consensus price target near $348), which can attract investor interest but is not an immediate catalyst. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Positive media/momentum stories (Zacks, FXEmpire) highlight RCL as a long‑term value/flow beneficiary — may support continued inflows but not a near‑term driver by itself. Read More. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Large, repeated insider selling by director Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen across Feb. 13–19 (multiple transactions totaling hundreds of thousands of shares, tens of millions of dollars) — a clear short‑term negative signal that has pressured the stock. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Additional insider disposals (Laura H. Bethge, Maritza Gomez Montiel) in the same window amplify the selling signal and raise near‑term concern about insider conviction. Read More. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Rising crude / fuel costs: coverage flags that oil near multi‑month highs can hit margins quickly for cruise operators (especially with notable leverage), creating downside risk to earnings and multiples. Read More.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Company Profile

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE: RCL), operating as part of the Royal Caribbean Group, is a global cruise company that develops, markets and operates passenger cruise ships. The company operates multiple consumer-facing cruise brands that offer short- and long-duration itineraries and a range of onboard experiences. Its core activities include itineraries and voyage operations, guest services and hospitality, onboard food and beverage, entertainment and recreation programming, and the commercial activities needed to sell and support cruises through both direct and travel‑agent channels.

Royal Caribbean’s ships serve a broad set of geographies worldwide, regularly deploying vessels in the Caribbean, North America (including Alaska), Europe, Asia, Australia and South America.