Advisory Alpha LLC Acquires 266 Shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Advisory Alpha LLC grew its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 18.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,737 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 266 shares during the period. Advisory Alpha LLC’s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $401,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of RCL. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,360 shares of the company’s stock worth $544,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. FSM Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. FSM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,636 shares of the company’s stock valued at $290,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group raised its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 2,117 shares of the company’s stock valued at $488,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the period. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 10.5% during the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 613 shares of the company’s stock worth $141,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hanseatic Management Services Inc. grew its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 12.0% during the fourth quarter. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. now owns 550 shares of the company’s stock valued at $127,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. 87.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Down 3.1 %

Shares of RCL stock opened at $235.82 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $237.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $197.44. The company has a current ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.63. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 1 year low of $113.10 and a 1 year high of $258.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $63.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.24, a PEG ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 2.59.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $5.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.05 by $0.15. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a return on equity of 52.92% and a net margin of 16.21%. The business had revenue of $4.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.89 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.85 earnings per share. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s revenue was up 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 11.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 13th. Investors of record on Friday, December 27th were paid a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 27th. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.93%. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Harri U. Kulovaara sold 3,256 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.62, for a total value 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. This trade represents 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, CAO Henry L. Pujol sold 6,723 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.51, for a total value of $1,401,812.73. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 9,964 shares in the company, valued at $2,077,593.64. The trade was a 40.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 404,332 shares of company stock worth $94,299,521. Insiders own 7.95% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $245.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $257.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $250.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $180.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $253.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Royal Caribbean Cruises presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $246.50.

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.