Sterling Financial Planning Inc. Invests $216,000 in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Sterling Financial Planning Inc. purchased a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 935 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $216,000.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Plato Investment Management Ltd acquired a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, LRI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 87.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on RCL shares. Mizuho reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $253.00 price objective (down previously from $255.00) on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Macquarie upped their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $245.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $253.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $204.00 to $272.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Royal Caribbean Cruises presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $284.12.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance

RCL opened at $263.97 on Thursday. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 1 year low of $113.10 and a 1 year high of $277.08. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $244.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $211.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.98 billion, a PE ratio of 24.69, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 2.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39, a quick ratio of 0.15 and a current ratio of 0.17.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.25 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS 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. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This is a boost from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.14%. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.58%.

Royal Caribbean Cruises declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, February 12th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 1.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.68, for a total value of $5,005,260.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 185,021 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $47,491,190.28. This represents a 9.53 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 7.95% 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.