Gotham Asset Management LLC Cuts Holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Gotham Asset Management LLC reduced its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 14.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 11,783 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,919 shares during the period. Gotham Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $2,718,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Capital International Investors raised its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 29,712,610 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,854,905,000 after purchasing an additional 278,860 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 8.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,072,316 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,476,003,000 after purchasing an additional 2,068,114 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 6.3% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,969,532 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,373,856,000 after purchasing an additional 353,893 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 4th quarter worth $707,833,000. Finally, DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main raised its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 24.0% in the 4th quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 2,653,258 shares of the company’s stock worth $612,080,000 after purchasing an additional 513,702 shares during the period. 87.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Trading Down 0.5%

RCL opened at $250.02 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $67.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.39, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.12. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 12 month low of $130.08 and a 12 month high of $277.08. The company has a current ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $211.08 and a 200 day moving average of $229.44.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.71 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $4 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.02 billion. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a return on equity of 48.97% and a net margin of 17.46%. The firm’s revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.77 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 3rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 4th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.20%. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.92%.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 12th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 1.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $253.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Melius Research raised Royal Caribbean Cruises to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. UBS Group raised their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $271.00 to $301.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Mizuho reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $253.00 price target (down from $255.00) on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Argus raised their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $280.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Royal Caribbean Cruises presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $271.30.

Insider Buying and Selling at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In other Royal Caribbean Cruises news, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.95, for a total transaction of $15,193,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 143,214 shares in the company, valued at $37,514,907.30. The trade was a 28.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Naftali Holtz sold 17,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.62, for a total value of $4,447,540.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 42,127 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,021,265.74. This trade represents a 28.75% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 89,992 shares of company stock worth $23,566,445 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 7.95% of the company’s stock.

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.