Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership Sells 49,508 Shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership cut its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL - Free Report) by 93.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,680 shares of the company's stock after selling 49,508 shares during the quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership's holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $849,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of RCL. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. raised its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 618.8% during the fourth quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 115 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 200 shares of the company's stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. 87.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE RCL traded up $1.36 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $193.06. The company had a trading volume of 314,800 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,333,006. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 12 month low of $126.65 and a 12 month high of $277.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39, a current ratio of 0.17 and a quick ratio of 0.15. The firm has a market cap of $51.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.11, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.26. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $220.20 and its 200-day simple moving average is $225.24.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.13. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a net margin of 17.46% and a return on equity of 48.97%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.25 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to purchase up to 1.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th were paid a $0.75 dividend. This is a positive change from Royal Caribbean Cruises's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. Royal Caribbean Cruises's dividend payout ratio is currently 28.06%.

Insider Transactions at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In other news, CFO Naftali Holtz sold 17,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.62, for a total transaction of $4,447,540.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 42,127 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,021,265.74. This trade represents a 28.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.68, for a total value of $5,005,260.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 185,021 shares in the company, valued at $47,491,190.28. The trade was a 9.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 109,492 shares of company stock valued at $28,571,705. Corporate insiders own 7.95% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on RCL. BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $262.00 target price on the stock. Barclays increased their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $287.00 to $308.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $270.00 to $220.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $271.00 to $301.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $276.95.

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.