Asset Planning Inc Buys Shares of 3,400 Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Asset Planning Inc acquired a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm acquired 3,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $784,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Plato Investment Management Ltd bought a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. raised its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 257.4% in the 3rd quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 168 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares during the period. LRI Investments LLC bought a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance

NYSE:RCL opened at $260.37 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $70.01 billion, a PE ratio of 24.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 2.59. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 12 month low of $113.10 and a 12 month high of $277.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $243.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $207.65.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last released 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 net margin of 17.46% and a return on equity of 48.97%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.25 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.15%. This is a positive change from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.58%.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

RCL has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Tigress Financial lifted their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $270.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $204.00 to $272.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Argus boosted their price objective 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. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $284.12.

Insider Transactions at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In related news, EVP Harri U. Kulovaara sold 3,256 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.62, for a total transaction of $763,922.72. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 22,348 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,243,287.76. The trade was a 12.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 230,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.62, for a total transaction of $53,732,600.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 18,556,860 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,335,253,633.20. This trade represents a 1.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 372,609 shares of company stock worth $87,647,208. Corporate insiders own 7.95% of the company’s stock.

About Royal Caribbean Cruises

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.