Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) Director Sells $6,073,122.00 in Stock

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) Director Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 19,140 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $317.30, for a total value of $6,073,122.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 17,552,628 shares in the company, valued at $5,569,448,864.40. This trade represents a 0.11% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

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

• On Tuesday, February 24th, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 345,111 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.73, for a total value of $108,961,896.03.
• On Friday, February 20th, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 109,297 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $314.81, for a total transaction of $34,407,788.57.
• On Thursday, February 19th, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 101,902 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $312.09, for a total transaction of $31,802,595.18.
• 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 transaction of $33,624,245.60.
• On Tuesday, February 17th, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 180,000 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $325.09, for a total transaction of $58,516,200.00.
• On Friday, February 13th, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 100,000 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $326.58, for a total transaction of $32,658,000.00.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance

RCL opened at $319.12 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $304.26 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $303.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $86.33 billion, a PE ratio of 20.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.91. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 52 week low of $164.01 and a 52 week high of $366.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.18.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $2.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.80. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a return on equity of 45.06% and a net margin of 23.80%.The business had revenue of $4.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.28 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.63 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 13.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate 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 announced 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. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. This is an increase from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.62%.

Royal Caribbean Cruises declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, December 10th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 2.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

RCL has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Friday, December 26th. Mizuho set a $379.00 price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $275.00 to $334.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Tigress Financial raised 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. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada set a $360.00 target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Friday, October 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Royal Caribbean Cruises presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $348.29.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Royal Caribbean Cruises

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in RCL. Capital International Investors boosted its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 9.8% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 36,165,358 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,088,156,000 after buying an additional 3,215,382 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 30,253,450 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,438,292,000 after buying an additional 187,283 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 20,176,544 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,627,669,000 after acquiring an additional 920,042 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,576,751 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,433,052,000 after acquiring an additional 84,202 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,054,191 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,961,758,000 after acquiring an additional 155,491 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

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.