Highland Capital Management LLC Sells 7,329 Shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. $RCL

Key Points

• Highland Capital Management cut its stake in Royal Caribbean by 44%, selling 7,329 shares in Q4 and retaining 9,320 shares worth about $2.6M.
• Significant insider selling has occurred recently: Director Arne Wilhelmsen sold 356,026 shares (~$113M) and CEO Jason Liberty sold 90,910 shares (~$29.7M), with insiders offloading about 1.97M shares (~$626.7M) in the past three months.
• Despite the selling, Royal Caribbean reported a strong Q1 beat (EPS $3.60 vs. $3.20 est.), declared a quarterly dividend of $1.50 per share, and carries a consensus analyst rating of roughly a "Moderate Buy" with a target near $347.

Highland Capital Management LLC lowered its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL - Free Report) by 44.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 9,320 shares of the company's stock after selling 7,329 shares during the quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC's holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $2,600,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the third quarter worth about $4,806,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 1.6% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 30,066,167 shares of the company's stock worth $9,728,810,000 after acquiring an additional 461,990 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 49.3% in the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 117,162 shares of the company's stock worth $37,931,000 after acquiring an additional 38,698 shares in the last quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. boosted its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 19.0% in the third quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 39,123 shares of the company's stock worth $12,659,000 after acquiring an additional 6,253 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 253.7% in the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 556,061 shares of the company's stock worth $179,241,000 after acquiring an additional 398,849 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.53% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Royal Caribbean Cruises news, Director Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 356,026 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $318.39, for a total value of $113,355,118.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 16,681,386 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,311,186,488.54. The trade was a 2.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 90,910 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $326.81, for a total value of $29,710,297.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 218,822 shares of the company's stock, valued at $71,513,217.82. The trade was a 29.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 1,967,319 shares of company stock valued at $626,681,935 over the last three months. 6.44% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on RCL. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $310.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $330.00 to $310.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 9th. William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Royal Caribbean Cruises has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $347.10.

Trending Headlines about Royal Caribbean Cruises

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

• Positive Sentiment: Strong Q1 results and fleet growth: RCL reported robust Q1 results (about $4.45B revenue, ~$941M net income, ~109% load factor), record bookings and confirmed additional Icon‑class ship orders through 2030, supporting both near‑term cash flow and long‑term capacity growth. How Investors Are Reacting To Royal Caribbean (RCL) Strong Q1 2026 Results And New Icon Ship Orders
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrade: J.P. Morgan moved RCL to a Buy, providing institutional validation that likely boosted investor demand. Royal Caribbean (RCL) Receives a Buy from J.P. Morgan
• Positive Sentiment: Shareholder return: The Board declared a quarterly cash dividend of $1.50 per share (payable July 2, record June 3), signaling confidence in the company’s cash generation and supporting income‑oriented investors. Royal Caribbean Group Declares Dividend
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst price target upside: Consensus analyst target noted around $352.89, implying meaningful upside from current levels and reinforcing buy/hold narratives. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. NYSE: RCL Receives $352.89 Consensus Target Price from Analysts
• Positive Sentiment: Macro/fuel fears viewed as manageable by some analysts: Commentary (Seeking Alpha) argues fuel‑cost risks are largely priced in, reducing one common downside concern for the trade. Royal Caribbean Cruises: Buy The Fuel Fears - Risks Mostly Baked In
• Neutral Sentiment: Increased market attention: Media and retail interest (Zacks, Jim Cramer mentions) are driving extra volume and visibility but are not direct fundamentals. Here is What to Know Beyond Why Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (RCL) is a Trending Stock Jim Cramer Reveals Why He Likes Royal Caribbean (RCL)
• Negative Sentiment: Sector headwinds: Competitor Norwegian cut its outlook and flagged softer demand and higher fuel costs amid geopolitical risk (e.g., impacts from the Iran conflict), which could pressure industry sentiment and margins if costs or demand weaken. Norwegian Cruise Line Cuts Outlook as Headwinds Build (RCL) Norwegian Cruise Line Stock Sinks. How the War in Iran Is Hitting Its Earnings Forecast.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance

Shares of RCL opened at $263.87 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $70.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.10, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.77. The business's 50-day moving average is $278.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $285.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 0.17 and a current ratio of 0.20. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a fifty-two week low of $223.00 and a fifty-two week high of $366.50.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $3.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.20 by $0.40. The business had revenue of $4.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.46 billion. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a return on equity of 45.25% and a net margin of 24.36%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.71 EPS. Royal Caribbean Cruises has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 3.830-3.930 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 17.100-17.500 EPS. Research analysts predict that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 17.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 3rd will be issued a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 3rd. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. Royal Caribbean Cruises's payout ratio is presently 36.61%.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Company Profile

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.

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