Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. $RCL Shares Sold by Assenagon Asset Management S.A.

Key Points

• Assenagon Asset Management S.A. drastically reduced its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 92.4%, selling 76,819 shares, and now holds 6,325 shares worth approximately $1.98 million.
• Royal Caribbean's stock is currently down 0.6% and has seen a substantial price fluctuation over the past year, with a 52-week low of $164.01 and a highs of $366.50.
• The company recently reported $4.38 EPS, surpassing estimates, and announced an increase in its quarterly dividend from $0.75 to $1.00.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. trimmed its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL - Free Report) by 92.4% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,325 shares of the company's stock after selling 76,819 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.'s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $1,981,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group acquired a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the first quarter valued at $25,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the first quarter valued at $26,000. Optimum Investment Advisors acquired a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the first quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, SouthState Corp purchased a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the first quarter valued at about $39,000. 87.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of RCL opened at $324.92 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $88.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.36, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 2.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.88, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a current ratio of 0.23. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 52 week low of $164.01 and a 52 week high of $366.50. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $335.02 and a 200-day moving average of $276.99.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) last announced its 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. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a return on equity of 47.15% and a net margin of 20.97%.The business had revenue of $4.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.54 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.21 EPS. Royal Caribbean Cruises's revenue for the quarter 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. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Royal Caribbean Cruises

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, Director Vagn O. Sorensen sold 10,300 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $330.04, for a total transaction of $3,399,412.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 16,407 shares in the company, valued at $5,414,966.28. This trade represents a 38.57% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 31,507 shares of company stock worth $10,091,282. Insiders own 6.95% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on RCL. Loop Capital reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $290.00 price target (up previously from $250.00) on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $302.00 to $367.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Royal Caribbean Cruises from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 28th. Susquehanna reissued a "positive" rating and issued a $385.00 target price (up from $275.00) on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $290.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Royal Caribbean Cruises has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $326.95.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.