Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Increases Position in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. $RCL

Key Points

• Zurcher Kantonalbank boosted its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises (RCL) by 3.5% in Q4, adding 4,995 shares to hold 147,393 shares valued at about $41.11 million (≈0.05% of the company).
• Insiders sold heavily during the quarter—Director Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 245,476 shares for roughly $76.48 million, and insiders in total sold 1,967,319 shares worth about $626.68 million—leaving insiders with 6.95% ownership.
• Royal Caribbean raised its quarterly dividend to $1.50 ($6.00 annualized, 2.1% yield), reported Q4 EPS of $2.80 on $4.26 billion revenue, and carries a consensus "Moderate Buy" analyst rating with a $349.20 price target.

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL - Free Report) by 3.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 147,393 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 4,995 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank owned 0.05% of Royal Caribbean Cruises worth $41,111,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Krilogy Financial LLC bought a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter worth about $302,000. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 175.0% during the 4th quarter. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,768 shares of the company's stock valued at $493,000 after purchasing an additional 1,125 shares during the last quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 6.5% during the 4th quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 9,728 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,713,000 after buying an additional 591 shares in the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 8.4% during the 4th quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 196,008 shares of the company's stock valued at $55,306,000 after buying an additional 15,131 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 19.6% in the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 52,564 shares of the company's stock worth $14,661,000 after buying an additional 8,622 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.53% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Royal Caribbean Cruises news, Director Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 245,476 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $311.54, for a total value of $76,475,593.04. Following the transaction, the director owned 16,435,910 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,120,443,401.40. The trade was a 1.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 7,854 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $326.21, for a total transaction of $2,562,053.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 32,786 shares in the company, valued at $10,695,121.06. The trade was a 19.33% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 1,967,319 shares of company stock valued at $626,681,935 in the last quarter. Insiders own 6.95% of the company's stock.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance

Shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock opened at $282.00 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77, a current ratio of 0.18 and a quick ratio of 0.16. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a one year low of $185.50 and a one year high of $366.50. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $289.69 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $288.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $76.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.93.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $2.80 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $2.80. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a return on equity of 45.06% and a net margin of 23.80%.The firm had revenue of $4.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.28 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.63 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 13.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 17.46 EPS for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 6th were given a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 6th. This is an increase from Royal Caribbean Cruises's previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. Royal Caribbean Cruises's dividend payout ratio is currently 38.44%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on RCL shares. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $310.00 to $370.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $380.00 price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Friday, January 30th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $376.00 to $341.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $275.00 to $334.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $349.20.

About Royal Caribbean Cruises

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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