Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) Given Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Royal Caribbean Cruises has a consensus analyst rating of “Moderate Buy”, with 15 of 20 brokerages rating it a buy and an average 12-month price target of about $345.63.
• The company’s recent earnings topped expectations, with Q1 EPS of $3.60 versus the $3.20 estimate and revenue up 11.3% year over year. Management also issued upbeat guidance for Q2 2026 and FY 2026.
• Despite positive fundamentals, there has been some mixed sentiment: insiders have sold shares in recent months, and at least one analyst recently lowered its price target while maintaining a hold rating.

Shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) have received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twenty brokerages that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $345.6316.

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on RCL shares. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $310.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Truist Financial reduced their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $318.00 to $297.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Friday. William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $380.00 price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $349.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st.

Insider Transactions at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In other Royal Caribbean Cruises news, Director Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 356,026 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were 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 owned 16,681,386 shares in the company, valued at $5,311,186,488.54. This represents a 2.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 1,135,858 shares of company stock valued at $358,605,301 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 6.44% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Royal Caribbean Cruises

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of RCL. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 12.2% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,312 shares of the company's stock valued at $303,000 after acquiring an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP boosted its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 40.8% in the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 20,918 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,297,000 after acquiring an additional 6,063 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership purchased a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the second quarter valued at about $1,762,000. Baird Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 5.4% during the second quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,772 shares of the company's stock worth $1,494,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the period. Finally, Brown Advisory Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the second quarter worth about $357,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.53% of the company's stock.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance

Royal Caribbean Cruises stock opened at $257.38 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $69.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.77. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $269.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $281.69. Royal Caribbean Cruises has a 12-month low of $232.10 and a 12-month high of $366.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $3.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 net margin of 24.36% and a return on equity of 45.25%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $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. Equities analysts expect that Royal Caribbean Cruises will post 17.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Announces Dividend

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

Trending Headlines about Royal Caribbean Cruises

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

• Positive Sentiment: Royal Caribbean reported a strong Q1 2026 with $4.50 billion in revenue, 11% year-over-year growth, and GAAP EPS of $3.48, topping guidance. The company also said demand remains resilient and that WAVE season bookings hit a record, which supports the bullish case for future cruise pricing and occupancy. Article
• Neutral Sentiment: The company reiterated roughly 10% revenue growth and higher net yields, but also pointed to geopolitical and environmental headwinds, suggesting execution remains solid while risks stay elevated. Article
• Negative Sentiment: Truist Financial lowered its price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises (RCL) from $318 to $297 and kept a hold rating, signaling less upside than before despite still being above the current share price. Article
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research downgraded RCL from hold to strong sell, and separately cut estimates for Q3 2026, Q4 2026, FY2026, and Q1 2027 earnings, adding to near-term pressure on the stock. Article
• Negative Sentiment: News that Mexico rejected Royal Caribbean’s Perfect Day water park project adds another regulatory setback, which could weigh on expansion plans and investor confidence. Article

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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