Balefire LLC Invests $263,000 in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. $RCL

Key Points

• Balefire LLC acquired 841 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. for approximately $263,000, reflecting continued institutional interest in the stock, which is currently 87.53% owned by institutional investors.
• The company reported strong earnings, with $4.38 EPS for the latest quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations and signaling a positive outlook for 2025.
• Royal Caribbean Cruises announced an increase in its quarterly dividend from $0.75 to $1.00 per share, with an annualized yield of 1.2% set to be paid on October 13th.

Balefire LLC bought a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 841 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $263,000.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in RCL. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 12.2% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,312 shares of the company's stock valued at $303,000 after buying an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP bought a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,427,000. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 35.6% during the fourth quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 18,490 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,265,000 after buying an additional 4,854 shares during the last quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $348,000. Finally, Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC grew its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 68.6% in the fourth quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 2,606 shares of the company's stock valued at $601,000 after purchasing an additional 1,060 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.53% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. TD Cowen began coverage on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $405.00 price objective for the company. Tigress Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $330.00 to $415.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $337.00 to $333.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $290.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. One 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 company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $326.95.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Royal Caribbean Cruises news, Director Richard D. Fain sold 16,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $311.02, for a total transaction of $4,976,320.00. Following the sale, the director owned 150,291 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,743,506.82. The trade was a 9.62% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Henry L. Pujol sold 5,207 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $329.47, for a total value of $1,715,550.29. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 7,826 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,578,432.22. This trade represents a 39.95% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 31,507 shares of company stock worth $10,091,282. 6.95% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:RCL traded up $3.35 on Friday, reaching $329.16. 3,627,787 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,852,686. The firm has a market cap of $89.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 2.12. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 1-year low of $164.01 and a 1-year high of $366.50. The company has a 50-day moving average of $336.20 and a 200-day moving average of $273.91. The company has a current ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.88.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $4.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.04 by $0.34. The company had revenue of $4.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.54 billion. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a net margin of 20.97% and a return on equity of 47.15%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.21 EPS. Royal Caribbean Cruises has set its FY 2025 guidance at 15.410-15.550 EPS. Q3 2025 guidance at 5.550-5.650 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 25th will be given a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. This is a boost from Royal Caribbean Cruises's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 25th. Royal Caribbean Cruises's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.49%.

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.