Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen Sells 345,111 Shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) Stock

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) Director Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 345,111 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.73, for a total value of $108,961,896.03. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 17,207,517 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,432,929,342.41. This trade represents a 1.97% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, February 23rd, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 19,140 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $317.30, for a total value of $6,073,122.00.
• On Friday, February 20th, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 109,297 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $314.81, for a total value of $34,407,788.57.
• On Thursday, February 19th, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 101,902 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $312.09, for a total value of $31,802,595.18.
• On Wednesday, February 18th, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 104,540 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $321.64, for a total value of $33,624,245.60.
• On Tuesday, February 17th, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 180,000 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $325.09, for a total value of $58,516,200.00.
• On Friday, February 13th, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 100,000 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $326.58, for a total value of $32,658,000.00.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance

RCL opened at $312.94 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $84.66 billion, a PE ratio of 20.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 1.91. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $303.62 and a 200-day moving average price of $303.19. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 1 year low of $164.01 and a 1 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.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $2.80 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.80. The business had revenue of $4.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.28 billion. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a net margin of 23.80% and a return on equity of 45.06%. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s revenue was up 13.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.63 EPS. Sell-side 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 firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. This is a positive change from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.62%.

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Royal Caribbean Cruises

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC now owns 2,485 shares of the company’s stock worth $693,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. AlphaStar Capital Management LLC increased its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. AlphaStar Capital Management LLC now owns 779 shares of the company’s stock worth $217,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 1,208 shares of the company’s stock valued at $337,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 29.1% during the second quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 142 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 6.4% during the third quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 562 shares of the company’s stock valued at $182,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on RCL shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $368.00 to $371.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group raised 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. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $380.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, November 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Royal Caribbean Cruises currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $348.29.

Key Stories Impacting Royal Caribbean Cruises

Here are the key news stories impacting Royal Caribbean Cruises this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Technical momentum — RCL recently broke out above its 50‑day moving average (short-term bullish signal) which can attract momentum buyers. RCL broke out above 50-day MA
• Positive Sentiment: Capital returns & growth investments — company plans (new Discovery‑class ships), a $2.0B buyback authorization and a raised quarterly dividend increase shareholder returns and support longer‑term valuation. Valuation, new ships and Mexico investments
• Neutral Sentiment: Peer/sector context — Norwegian Cruise (NCLH) Q4 commentary (occupancy/pricing trends) provides industry read-throughs that could influence RCL sentiment around upcoming results or bookings. NCLH Q4 preview
• Neutral Sentiment: Longer-term legal uncertainty — Supreme Court cases on maritime compensation (Cuba-related) are noted but represent longer‑term legal/regulatory risk rather than an immediate earnings shock. Supreme Court maritime cases
• Negative Sentiment: Large insider selling — director Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen has sold several large blocks this month (multiple Form 4s totaling hundreds of thousands of shares and tens of millions in proceeds), a signal that often weighs on sentiment. Insider selling report
• Negative Sentiment: Hedging/bear bets rising — reports of unusual put buying suggest elevated downside hedging or bearish interest that can amplify near‑term weakness. Options/put activity
• Negative Sentiment: Operational disruption & macro risk — cruise itinerary cancellations (Puerto Vallarta) and renewed tariff/trade volatility raise the risk of reroutes, extra costs and weaker travel demand for cyclical leisure names. Cruise cancellations in Mexico

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.