Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) Hits New 1-Year High Following Analyst Upgrade

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday after Bank of America raised their price target on the stock from $230.00 to $355.00. Bank of America currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Royal Caribbean Cruises traded as high as $355.30 and last traded at $354.47, with a volume of 357755 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $348.54.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on RCL. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $235.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, July 7th. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Thursday, March 27th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $262.00 target price for the company. Truist Financial restated a "hold" rating and set a $337.00 target price (up from $275.00) on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research report on Monday. Melius Research raised shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $263.00 to $358.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Five research 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $311.05.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $253.10, for a total value of $4,960,760.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 165,421 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $41,868,055.10. This represents a 10.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 6.95% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. CX Institutional lifted its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 1.4% during the second quarter. CX Institutional now owns 2,423 shares of the company's stock worth $759,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Tritonpoint Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 0.8% during the second quarter. Tritonpoint Wealth LLC now owns 4,531 shares of the company's stock worth $1,422,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 1.0% in the second quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,823 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,197,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Ostrum Asset Management raised its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Ostrum Asset Management now owns 11,610 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,678,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fulton Bank N.A. raised its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 0.8% in the second quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 5,023 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,573,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.53% of the company's stock.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Trading Up 0.9%

The company's fifty day moving average is $292.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $249.39. The stock has a market cap of $95.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.28, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 2.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.21.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.71 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $4 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.02 billion. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a net margin of 19.38% and a return on equity of 47.89%. The firm's revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.77 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 4th were given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.85%. Royal Caribbean Cruises's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.92%.

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.