Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) Receives $283.53 Consensus Price Target from Analysts

Shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the eighteen brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $282.33.

RCL has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Susquehanna restated a “positive” rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $271.00 to $301.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Mizuho reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $253.00 target price (down previously from $255.00) on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $287.00 to $308.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance

NYSE:RCL opened at $217.23 on Tuesday. Royal Caribbean Cruises has a 52 week low of $125.06 and a 52 week high of $277.08. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $239.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is $222.94. The company has a market capitalization of $58.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.32, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 period last year, the company posted $1.25 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Royal Caribbean Cruises will post 14.9 EPS for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.38%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This is a positive change from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio is 28.06%.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 1.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In other news, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 14,992 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.86, for a total value of $3,925,805.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 21,155 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,539,648.30. This represents a 41.48 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.95, for a total transaction of $15,193,100.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 143,214 shares in the company, valued at $37,514,907.30. This represents a 28.83 % 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. 7.95% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Royal Caribbean Cruises

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $18,357,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 4th quarter worth $90,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 4th quarter worth about $28,954,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. Finally, Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC purchased a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 4th quarter valued at about $279,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

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.