Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) Director Sells $76,475,593.04 in Stock

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) Director Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 245,476 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $311.54, for a total value of $76,475,593.04. Following the transaction, the director owned 16,435,910 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,120,443,401.40. This trade represents a 1.47% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Thursday, February 26th, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 356,026 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $318.39, for a total value of $113,355,118.14.
• On Wednesday, February 25th, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 170,105 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.92, for a total value of $53,739,571.60.
• On Tuesday, February 24th, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 345,111 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.73, for a total value of $108,961,896.03.
• On Monday, February 23rd, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 19,140 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $317.30, for a total value of $6,073,122.00.
• On Friday, February 20th, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 109,297 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $314.81, for a total transaction of $34,407,788.57.
• On Thursday, February 19th, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 101,902 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $312.09, for a total transaction of $31,802,595.18.
• On Wednesday, February 18th, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 104,540 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $321.64, for a total transaction of $33,624,245.60.
• On Tuesday, February 17th, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 180,000 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $325.09, for a total transaction of $58,516,200.00.
• On Friday, February 13th, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 100,000 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $326.58, for a total transaction of $32,658,000.00.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance

Shares of RCL stock traded down $8.45 during trading on Friday, hitting $310.49. The company had a trading volume of 2,986,249 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,416,793. The firm has a market capitalization of $84.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.91. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a one year low of $164.01 and a one year high of $366.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.18. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $304.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $303.30.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $2.80 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.80. The firm had revenue of $4.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.63 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th will be given a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. This is a positive change from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.44%.

Key Royal Caribbean Cruises News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Company expansion push — coverage highlights Royal Caribbean’s aggressive growth and fleet/itinerary expansion plans that back continued demand recovery and revenue upside. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Luxury brand development — Silversea unveiled public spaces for The Cormorant at 55 South, a new hotel supporting Antarctic fly‑cruise packages, strengthening the company’s premium/expedition revenue mix. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Completed $2.5B senior notes offering — RCL issued $1.25B of 4.75% notes due 2033 and $1.25B of 5.25% notes due 2038. The deal boosts liquidity and funds financing needs but increases long‑term debt and interest expense. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Large insider selling — Director Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 771,607 shares across Feb 25–27 for roughly $243.6M in proceeds (three Form 4 filings). While the sales are a small percentage of his total holdings, the magnitude and timing can pressure sentiment and share price. Read More.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Royal Caribbean Cruises

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of RCL. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 12.2% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,312 shares of the company’s stock valued at $303,000 after buying an additional 143 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP boosted its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 40.8% in the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 20,918 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,297,000 after acquiring an additional 6,063 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC increased its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 5.0% during the 2nd quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC now owns 1,915 shares of the company’s stock valued at $600,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the period. Howard Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 27.7% during the 2nd quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,478 shares of the company’s stock worth $464,000 after purchasing an additional 321 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FSA Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $215,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $380.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Susquehanna set a $350.00 target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $275.00 to $334.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $321.00 to $318.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Royal Caribbean Cruises currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price 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.