Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) Director Maritza Gomez Montiel Sells 1,385 Shares

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) Director Maritza Gomez Montiel sold 1,385 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $327.18, for a total transaction of $453,144.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 12,849 shares in the company, valued at $4,203,935.82. This trade represents a 9.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Performance

NYSE:RCL traded down $4.62 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $319.11. 1,725,531 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,430,120. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $299.53 and a 200 day moving average of $303.03. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a twelve month low of $164.01 and a twelve month high of $366.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $86.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.91.

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

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. This is an increase from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio is currently 38.44%.

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Royal Caribbean Cruises

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of RCL. Strive Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 4th quarter worth $51,000. Virtue Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 37.1% in the 4th quarter. Virtue Capital Management LLC now owns 10,911 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,043,000 after acquiring an additional 2,950 shares during the last quarter. Braeburn Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the fourth quarter worth $437,000. Vident Advisory LLC raised its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 30,290 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,449,000 after buying an additional 164 shares during the period. Finally, Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC now owns 4,604 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,284,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the period. 87.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

RCL has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $324.00 to $361.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $360.00 price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Friday, October 31st. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $380.00 price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research report on Friday, January 30th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, Susquehanna set a $350.00 target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $348.29.

About Royal Caribbean Cruises

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.