Carret Asset Management LLC Has $254,000 Holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Carret Asset Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 8.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,100 shares of the company’s stock after selling 100 shares during the quarter. Carret Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $254,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. National Pension Service raised its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 138.9% in the fourth quarter. National Pension Service now owns 864,049 shares of the company’s stock valued at $199,327,000 after purchasing an additional 502,349 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the fourth quarter valued at $69,556,000. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd grew its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2,042.8% in the fourth quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 122,887 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,349,000 after acquiring an additional 117,152 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 138.2% in the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 161,835 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,703,000 after acquiring an additional 93,899 shares during the period. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund bought a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the third quarter valued at $14,544,000. 87.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on RCL. Barclays upped their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $287.00 to $308.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Mizuho restated an “outperform” rating and set a $253.00 target price (down previously from $255.00) on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $250.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. UBS Group increased their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $271.00 to $301.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $283.00 to $304.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Royal Caribbean Cruises has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $283.53.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Up 2.1 %

Shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock opened at $212.33 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $241.31 and its 200 day simple moving average is $219.53. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 52-week low of $125.06 and a 52-week high of $277.08. The firm has a market cap of $57.14 billion, a PE ratio of 19.86, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.53. 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 earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.13. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a return on equity of 48.97% and a net margin of 17.46%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.25 EPS. On average, analysts predict 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.41%. This is an increase from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.06%.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, February 12th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 1.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In other news, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 14,992 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.86, for a total transaction of $3,925,805.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 21,155 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,539,648.30. The trade was a 41.48 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was 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 owns 143,214 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $37,514,907.30. This represents a 28.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 109,492 shares of company stock worth $28,571,705 over the last ninety days. 7.95% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.