Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) Price Target Lowered to $341.00 at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) had its target price dropped by analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $376.00 to $341.00 in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price target suggests a potential upside of 22.27% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on the stock. Mizuho set a $379.00 price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Wednesday, March 25th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $318.00 to $327.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $275.00 to $334.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $351.55.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Up 4.2%

NYSE:RCL traded up $11.19 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $278.90. 3,106,982 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,517,164. Royal Caribbean Cruises has a one year low of $177.33 and a one year high of $366.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77, a current ratio of 0.18 and a quick ratio of 0.16. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $298.93 and a 200 day moving average price of $291.12. The company has a market cap of $75.45 billion, a PE ratio of 17.89, a P/E/G ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.93.

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

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Wednesday, December 10th that allows the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 2.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In other Royal Caribbean Cruises news, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 7,854 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were 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 approximately $10,695,121.06. This represents a 19.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 245,476 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $311.54, for a total transaction of $76,475,593.04. Following the sale, the director directly owned 16,435,910 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,120,443,401.40. This represents a 1.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,967,319 shares of company stock valued at $626,681,935. Insiders own 6.95% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Royal Caribbean Cruises

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in RCL. Montag A & Associates Inc. increased its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 184.4% during the fourth quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 91 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Ares Financial Consulting LLC purchased a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. purchased a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Finally, Quattro Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. 87.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.