Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Has $17.88 Million Position in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. $RCL

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 29.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 55,248 shares of the company’s stock after selling 22,991 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC’s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $17,877,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group acquired a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. 1 North Wealth Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH acquired a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 87.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Trading Up 2.3%

Shares of RCL stock opened at $311.43 on Friday. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 12-month low of $164.01 and a 12-month high of $366.50. The company has a market capitalization of $84.93 billion, a PE ratio of 20.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 1.94. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $272.63 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $307.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The company reported $5.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.68 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $5.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.16 billion. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a return on equity of 44.68% and a net margin of 23.33%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $5.20 earnings per share. Royal Caribbean Cruises has set its FY 2025 guidance at 15.580-15.630 EPS and its Q4 2025 guidance at 2.740-2.790 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Wednesday, December 10th that allows the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 2.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 26th will be given a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 26th. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s payout ratio is presently 26.90%.

Insider Activity at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In related news, Director Maritza Gomez Montiel sold 1,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $281.76, for a total transaction of $309,936.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 14,234 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,010,571.84. This trade represents a 7.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 6.95% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

RCL has been the topic of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research report on Friday, December 26th. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $372.00 to $362.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 20th. Barclays reduced their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $342.00 to $324.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $353.00 to $304.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded 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, nineteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $324.82.

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.