DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main Increases Holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main grew its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL - Free Report) by 24.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,653,258 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 513,702 shares during the period. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main owned 0.99% of Royal Caribbean Cruises worth $612,080,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. EP Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 20.9% in the 4th quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,983 shares of the company's stock valued at $458,000 after purchasing an additional 343 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 8.3% during the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 61,937 shares of the company's stock worth $14,288,000 after buying an additional 4,770 shares during the last quarter. Centiva Capital LP acquired a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter valued at about $975,000. Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 6.4% during the fourth quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 15,643 shares of the company's stock worth $3,609,000 after acquiring an additional 939 shares during the period. Finally, Cary Street Partners Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $333,000. Institutional investors own 87.53% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

RCL has been the subject of several analyst reports. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $249.00 to $263.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Northcoast Research started coverage on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Friday, April 25th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $279.00 price target on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $305.00 to $245.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $232.00 to $272.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Royal Caribbean Cruises has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $271.30.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Trading Up 3.8%

RCL traded up $8.97 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $242.23. 2,537,505 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,304,481. The company has a quick ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $65.78 billion, a PE ratio of 22.66, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.12. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 52-week low of $130.08 and a 52-week high of $277.08. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $208.59 and a 200 day moving average price of $228.54.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.71 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $4 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.02 billion. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a return on equity of 48.97% and a net margin of 17.46%. Royal Caribbean Cruises's revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.77 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 4th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.24%. Royal Caribbean Cruises's dividend payout ratio is presently 24.92%.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 1.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In related news, CFO Naftali Holtz sold 17,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.62, for a total transaction of $4,447,540.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 42,127 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,021,265.74. This trade represents a 28.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the director now owns 185,021 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $47,491,190.28. This represents a 9.53% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 109,492 shares of company stock valued at $28,571,705. 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.