Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) CEO Jason Liberty Sells 90,910 Shares

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) CEO Jason Liberty sold 90,910 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $326.81, for a total transaction of $29,710,297.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 218,822 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $71,513,217.82. This trade represents a 29.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Down 4.1%

NYSE:RCL opened at $319.26 on Friday. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 52 week low of $164.01 and a 52 week high of $366.50. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $296.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $303.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $86.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.91. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $2.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.80. The firm had revenue of $4.26 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.28 billion. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a return on equity of 45.06% and a net margin of 23.80%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 13.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.63 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 10th that allows the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 2.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th will be issued a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. This is an increase from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.62%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in RCL. Montag A & Associates Inc. grew its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 184.4% in the 4th quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 91 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Ares Financial Consulting LLC acquired a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Quattro Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. SRH Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Tucker Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. 87.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Trending Headlines about Royal Caribbean Cruises

Here are the key news stories impacting Royal Caribbean Cruises this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 2025 results showed solid demand and margin recovery — revenue and EPS rose ~13% and ~36% year‑over‑year, operating profit jumped ~49%, and operating cash generation improved. These fundamentals support analyst bullishness and longer‑term earnings upgrades. RCL Q4 2025 Earnings (QuiverQuant)
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street remains constructive: broker consensus is around a “Moderate Buy” and many firms maintain buy/overweight ratings with price targets well above current levels — a tailwind for the stock if sentiment persists. Consensus Rating: Moderate Buy (AmericanBankingNews)
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research nudged near‑term EPS estimates slightly higher for Q1 and Q2, signaling some upward revision to the company’s short‑term earnings outlook. (These are modest changes but supportive.)
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks also published longer‑range projections (FY2027/FY2028) that are mixed — a small cut to FY2027 was offset by higher FY2028 expectations — leaving medium‑term consensus roughly intact.
• Negative Sentiment: Royal Caribbean priced $2.5 billion of senior unsecured notes ($1.25B due 2033 at 4.75% and $1.25B due 2038 at 5.25%). The deal increases debt and fixed interest obligations, which can pressure the stock, especially given already elevated capex and leverage metrics. Pricing of Senior Unsecured Notes (PR Newswire) Royal Caribbean Issues $2.5 Billion in Senior Notes (TipRanks)
• Negative Sentiment: High near‑term capital spending: management’s reported capex jumped materially in Q4, and Quiver data shows insider sales in recent months — both factors can worry investors about future free cash flow and signal reduced insider conviction. Capex & Insider Activity (QuiverQuant)

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

RCL has been the subject of several research reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Friday, December 26th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $360.00 target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Barclays upped their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $324.00 to $361.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $290.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $348.29.

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.