Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) Director Sells $53,739,571.60 in Stock

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) Director Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 170,105 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.92, for a total value of $53,739,571.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 17,037,412 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,382,459,199.04. This represents a 0.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

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

• On Friday, February 27th, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 245,476 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $311.54, for a total value of $76,475,593.04.
• On Thursday, February 26th, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 356,026 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $318.39, for a total transaction of $113,355,118.14.
• On Tuesday, February 24th, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 345,111 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.73, for a total transaction of $108,961,896.03.
• On Monday, February 23rd, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 19,140 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $317.30, for a total transaction of $6,073,122.00.
• On Friday, February 20th, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 109,297 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $314.81, for a total transaction of $34,407,788.57.
• On Thursday, February 19th, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 101,902 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $312.09, for a total transaction 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 transaction 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 transaction of $58,516,200.00.
• On Friday, February 13th, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 100,000 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $326.58, for a total value of $32,658,000.00.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Down 2.6%

Shares of NYSE RCL opened at $310.49 on Monday. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 12-month low of $164.01 and a 12-month high of $366.50. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $304.59 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $303.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $84.00 billion, a PE ratio of 19.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.87. The company has a current ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.80. The firm had revenue of $4.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.28 billion. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a return on equity of 45.06% and a net margin of 23.80%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.63 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 10th that permits the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 2.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be issued a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. This is an increase from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.62%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Barclays raised their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $324.00 to $361.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Tigress Financial upped their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $415.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Mizuho set a $379.00 price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $353.00 to $304.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Royal Caribbean Cruises currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $348.29.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of RCL. California Public Employees Retirement System increased its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 11.1% during the 2nd quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 433,018 shares of the company’s stock valued at $135,595,000 after purchasing an additional 43,184 shares in the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the third quarter valued at $4,806,000. Marion Wealth Management acquired a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the second quarter valued at $291,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 1.6% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 30,066,167 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,728,810,000 after buying an additional 461,990 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 253.7% in the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 556,061 shares of the company’s stock worth $179,241,000 after acquiring an additional 398,849 shares during the period. 87.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Stories Impacting Royal Caribbean Cruises

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

• Positive Sentiment: Company expansion push — coverage highlights Royal Caribbean’s aggressive growth and fleet/itinerary expansion plans that back continued demand recovery and revenue upside. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Luxury brand development — Silversea unveiled public spaces for The Cormorant at 55 South, a new hotel supporting Antarctic fly‑cruise packages, strengthening the company’s premium/expedition revenue mix. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Completed $2.5B senior notes offering — RCL issued $1.25B of 4.75% notes due 2033 and $1.25B of 5.25% notes due 2038. The deal boosts liquidity and funds financing needs but increases long‑term debt and interest expense. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Large insider selling — Director Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 771,607 shares across Feb 25–27 for roughly $243.6M in proceeds (three Form 4 filings). While the sales are a small percentage of his total holdings, the magnitude and timing can pressure sentiment and share price. Read More.

About Royal Caribbean Cruises

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.