Proficio Capital Partners LLC Invests $302,000 in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 1,307 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $302,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. LRI Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. Finally, Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 100.0% during the fourth quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 200 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on RCL shares. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $275.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Susquehanna restated a “positive” rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $253.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $287.00 to $308.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $283.00 to $304.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $283.53.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.95, for a total value of $15,193,100.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 143,214 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $37,514,907.30. The trade was a 28.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.68, for a total value of $5,005,260.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 185,021 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,491,190.28. This represents a 9.53 % decrease in their position. 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 quarter. Insiders own 7.95% of the company’s stock.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Trading Down 2.3 %

NYSE RCL opened at $219.76 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 52 week low of $125.06 and a 52 week high of $277.08. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $239.63 and a 200-day moving average price of $222.98. The company has a market cap of $59.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.56, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.53.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.13. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a net margin of 17.46% and a return on equity of 48.97%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.25 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This is a boost from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.37%. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s payout ratio is presently 28.06%.

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

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.