Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) Stake Decreased by Polymer Capital Management HK LTD

Polymer Capital Management HK LTD reduced its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 40.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 9,000 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,000 shares during the quarter. Polymer Capital Management HK LTD’s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $2,076,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. increased its holdings 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 valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Institutional investors own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. 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. Tigress Financial lifted their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $270.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Susquehanna reiterated a “positive” rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. Mizuho reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $253.00 target price (down from $255.00) on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Monday, March 31st. They set a “hold” rating and a $230.00 target price for the company. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $279.58.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance

Shares of RCL opened at $177.60 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $234.61 and its 200-day moving average is $224.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39, a current ratio of 0.17 and a quick ratio of 0.15. The company has a market capitalization of $47.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.61, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.26. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a fifty-two week low of $125.06 and a fifty-two week high of $277.08.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 posted $1.25 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were given a $0.75 dividend. This is a positive change from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.69%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.06%.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 1.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In other Royal Caribbean Cruises news, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.95, for a total value of $15,193,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 143,214 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $37,514,907.30. The trade was a 28.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 owns 185,021 shares in the company, valued at $47,491,190.28. This represents a 9.53 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 109,492 shares of company stock valued at $28,571,705 in the last three months. 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.