Dark Forest Capital Management LP Buys 28,218 Shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. $RCL

Key Points

• Dark Forest Capital Management LP significantly increased its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 611.4%, acquiring an additional 28,218 shares, bringing its total holdings to 32,833 shares valued at approximately $6.75 million.
• Insider selling activity has been noted as executives sold a total of 31,507 shares, representing a significant decrease in their ownership, with notable sales from CAO Henry L. Pujol and Director Vagn O. Sorensen.
• Several analysts have adjusted their ratings and price targets for Royal Caribbean Cruises, with JPMorgan raising its target to $367 and Macquarie reducing it to $265, reflecting varying outlooks on the company's performance.

Dark Forest Capital Management LP lifted its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL - Free Report) by 611.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 32,833 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 28,218 shares during the quarter. Royal Caribbean Cruises comprises 0.3% of Dark Forest Capital Management LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. Dark Forest Capital Management LP's holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $6,745,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in RCL. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position 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 worth $303,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 6.7% during the 4th quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,748 shares of the company's stock worth $404,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 4th quarter worth about $333,000. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 6.4% in the 4th 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 last quarter. Finally, Centiva Capital LP acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 4th quarter worth about $975,000. Institutional investors own 87.53% of the company's stock.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Performance

Shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock traded down $7.62 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $352.44. 1,455,537 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,835,217. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 12 month low of $154.08 and a 12 month high of $366.50. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $334.99 and a 200 day simple moving average of $267.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.88, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a current ratio of 0.23. The company has a market capitalization of $95.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.42, a P/E/G ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 2.12.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $311.00 to $353.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Macquarie dropped their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $300.00 to $265.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 28th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $235.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $263.00 to $358.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. One 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat, Royal Caribbean Cruises has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $327.14.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Royal Caribbean Cruises Company Profile

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.