Westfield Capital Management Co. LP Decreases Stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. $RCL

Westfield Capital Management Co. LP cut its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 4.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 336,512 shares of the company’s stock after selling 16,013 shares during the period. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP owned approximately 0.12% of Royal Caribbean Cruises worth $108,889,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. California Public Employees Retirement System increased its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 11.1% in the 2nd quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 433,018 shares of the company’s stock worth $135,595,000 after buying an additional 43,184 shares during the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the third quarter worth about $4,806,000. Marion Wealth Management bought a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the second quarter worth approximately $291,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 1.6% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 30,066,167 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,728,810,000 after acquiring an additional 461,990 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 253.7% during the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 556,061 shares of the company’s stock valued at $179,241,000 after purchasing an additional 398,849 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In other Royal Caribbean Cruises news, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 7,854 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $326.21, for a total transaction of $2,562,053.34. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 32,786 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,695,121.06. The trade was a 19.33% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael W. Bayley sold 80,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $326.82, for a total value of $26,145,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 58,108 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,990,856.56. This represents a 57.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 1,195,712 shares of company stock worth $383,111,652 over the last three months. Company insiders own 6.95% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

RCL has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Barclays lifted their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $324.00 to $361.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $353.00 to $304.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 12th. Tigress Financial increased their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $415.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $380.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $348.29.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Down 1.1%

NYSE:RCL opened at $312.94 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $84.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 1.91. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a twelve month low of $164.01 and a twelve month high of $366.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $303.62 and a 200-day simple moving average of $303.19.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.80. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a net margin of 23.80% and a return on equity of 45.06%. The firm had revenue of $4.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.28 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.63 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, December 10th that allows the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 2.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. This is a boost from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s payout ratio is presently 25.62%.

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.