Royal Caribbean Cruises Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:RCL)

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Tuesday. Stock traders bought 24,022 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 164% compared to the typical daily volume of 9,093 call options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Citigroup upped their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $257.00 to $283.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Bank of America upped their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Mizuho reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $253.00 price target (down from $255.00) on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Macquarie upped their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $189.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $253.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Royal Caribbean Cruises currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $252.31.

Insider Buying and Selling at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In related news, Director Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 139,353 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $237.89, for a total transaction of $33,150,685.17. Following the sale, the director now owns 18,167,507 shares in the company, valued at $4,321,868,240.23. This represents a 0.76 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Harri U. Kulovaara sold 3,256 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.62, for a total value of $763,922.72. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 22,348 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,243,287.76. The trade was a 12.72 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 372,609 shares of company stock worth $87,647,208. Insiders own 7.95% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Royal Caribbean Cruises

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Plato Investment Management Ltd bought a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the third quarter valued at $26,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the third quarter valued at $27,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. grew its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 257.4% during the third quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 168 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares during the period. Finally, ORG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter valued at $40,000. 87.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Performance

Shares of RCL opened at $264.71 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.63. The company has a market capitalization of $71.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.21, a PEG ratio of 0.50 and a beta of 2.59. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $237.87 and a 200 day moving average of $199.52. Royal Caribbean Cruises has a 12 month low of $113.10 and a 12 month high of $269.96.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.13. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a return on equity of 52.92% and a net margin of 16.21%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.25 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Royal Caribbean Cruises will post 11.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Investors of record on Friday, December 27th were given a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.83%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 27th. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s payout ratio is 22.61%.

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.