Baird Financial Group Inc. Reduces Position in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. $RCL

Key Points

• Baird Financial Group cut its Royal Caribbean stake by 55.7% in the second quarter, selling 6,511 shares and retaining 5,185 shares valued at approximately $1.65 million. Institutional investors collectively own 87.53% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with Royal Caribbean carrying a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $353.40. Price targets range from $297 to $415.
• Royal Caribbean exceeded quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $4.21 in EPS and $4.83 billion in revenue, while revenue increased 6.5% year over year. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $1.50 per share, representing a 2.4% annualized yield.

Baird Financial Group Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL - Free Report) by 55.7% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,185 shares of the company's stock after selling 6,511 shares during the quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $1,646,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in RCL. IMG Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the first quarter worth about $27,000. Main Street Group LTD bought a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Monetary Solutions Ltd bought a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Bell Investment Advisors Inc purchased a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, NBH Bank purchased a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. 87.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Truist Financial lowered their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $318.00 to $297.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $361.00 to $388.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. UBS Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $367.00 price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $410.00 to $415.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $353.40.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Royal Caribbean Cruises news, CEO Michael Bayley sold 12,811 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.99, for a total value of $4,048,147.89. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 45,297 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,313,399.03. The trade was a 22.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 6.44% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Down 1.6%

Shares of NYSE RCL opened at $245.73 on Friday. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 1 year low of $232.10 and a 1 year high of $356.39. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $289.02 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $283.61. The company has a market cap of $65.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.19, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a current ratio of 0.21 and a quick ratio of 0.19.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The company reported $4.21 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.98 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $4.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.82 billion. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a return on equity of 43.33% and a net margin of 23.54%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $4.38 earnings per share. Royal Caribbean Cruises has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.730-17.870 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 6.260-6.360 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 17.78 earnings per share for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 8th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 17th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 17th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. Royal Caribbean Cruises's payout ratio is 37.08%.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Profile

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd., now operating as Royal Caribbean Group, is a global cruise vacation company headquartered in Miami, Florida. The company provides cruise vacations and related travel experiences through a fleet of ocean-going ships serving destinations across the Caribbean, Europe, Alaska, Asia, Australia and New Zealand, and other regions.

Royal Caribbean Group's principal brands include Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises and Silversea. Royal Caribbean International focuses on large-ship vacations featuring entertainment, dining, family activities and onboard attractions; Celebrity Cruises offers premium cruises; and Silversea specializes in luxury and expedition voyages.

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