FourThought Financial Partners LLC Makes New $604,000 Investment in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

FourThought Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 2,619 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $604,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Plato Investment Management Ltd purchased a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the third quarter worth $26,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the third quarter worth $27,000. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the third quarter worth $31,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Finally, ORG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the fourth quarter worth $40,000. 87.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

RCL has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $283.00 to $304.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $290.00 price objective on the stock. Mizuho reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $253.00 price objective (down from $255.00) on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Argus boosted their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $280.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Royal Caribbean Cruises has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $284.12.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.95, for a total value of $15,193,100.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 143,214 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,514,907.30. This trade represents a 28.83 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.68, for a total transaction 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. This represents a 9.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 109,492 shares of company stock worth $28,571,705. Company insiders own 7.95% of the company’s stock.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Trading Up 0.1 %

NYSE RCL opened at $237.88 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $244.16 and a 200 day moving average of $214.47. The company has a market capitalization of $64.02 billion, a PE ratio of 22.25, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.59. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 1 year low of $119.48 and a 1 year 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.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 period in the prior year, the company earned $1.25 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.26%. This is an increase from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio is 28.06%.

Royal Caribbean Cruises declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, February 12th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 1.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

About Royal Caribbean Cruises

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.