Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. $RCL Shares Sold by Handelsbanken Fonder AB

Handelsbanken Fonder AB lessened its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 381,381 shares of the company’s stock after selling 11,980 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB owned approximately 0.14% of Royal Caribbean Cruises worth $123,407,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of RCL. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the second quarter worth about $31,000. GGM Financials LLC acquired a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Financial Gravity Companies Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the second quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 318.8% during the 3rd quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 134 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the period. Finally, Westside Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 29.1% during the 2nd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 142 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. 87.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on RCL. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Friday, December 26th. Truist Financial lowered their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $321.00 to $318.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Tigress Financial upped their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $415.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Royal Caribbean Cruises from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $348.29.

Insider Activity at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In other Royal Caribbean Cruises news, Director Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 345,111 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.73, for a total value of $108,961,896.03. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 17,207,517 shares in the company, valued at $5,432,929,342.41. This represents a 1.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael W. Bayley sold 80,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 58,108 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,990,856.56. The trade was a 57.93% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,195,712 shares of company stock worth $383,111,652. Corporate insiders own 6.95% of the company’s stock.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Trading Up 2.0%

NYSE:RCL opened at $319.12 on Friday. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 1 year low of $164.01 and a 1 year high of $366.50. The stock has a market cap of $86.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.18. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $304.26 and a 200-day simple moving average of $303.30.

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

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be issued a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. This is a positive change from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.62%.

Royal Caribbean Cruises declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, December 10th that permits the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to buy up to 2.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.