LPL Financial LLC Sells 12,052 Shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Key Points

• LPL Financial LLC decreased its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. by 6.0%, holding approximately 0.07% of the company worth $38.8 million after selling 12,052 shares in the latest quarter.
• Analysts have generally positive views on RCL, with 18 buy ratings, resulting in an average consensus price target of $321.10, while Sanford C. Bernstein recently raised its price objective to $360.00.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.75, reflecting a 1.0% yield, and reported an earnings per share of $4.38 for the last quarter, exceeding consensus estimates.

LPL Financial LLC trimmed its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL - Free Report) by 6.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 188,944 shares of the company's stock after selling 12,052 shares during the quarter. LPL Financial LLC owned approximately 0.07% of Royal Caribbean Cruises worth $38,817,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of RCL. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 1st quarter worth $25,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 1st quarter worth $26,000. Optimum Investment Advisors acquired a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 1st quarter worth $31,000. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Capital A Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 4th quarter worth $40,000. 87.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Henry L. Pujol sold 5,207 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 7,826 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,578,432.22. The trade was a 39.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.10, for a total value of $4,960,760.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 165,421 shares of the company's stock, valued at $41,868,055.10. This represents a 10.59% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 6.95% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of NYSE:RCL traded down $3.75 on Friday, reaching $314.12. The company had a trading volume of 2,827,375 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,306,951. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a twelve month low of $130.08 and a twelve month high of $355.91. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $302.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $254.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $85.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.55, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 2.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.88.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $4.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.04 by $0.34. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a return on equity of 47.15% and a net margin of 20.97%. The company had revenue of $4.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.54 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.21 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 4th were given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Royal Caribbean Cruises's dividend payout ratio is presently 22.49%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

RCL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $302.00 to $367.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday. William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Bank of America lifted their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $230.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $305.00 to $245.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $263.00 to $358.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $321.10.

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.