Truist Financial Issues Positive Forecast for Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) Stock Price

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) had its target price increased by equities research analysts at Truist Financial from $272.00 to $275.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the stock. Truist Financial’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 8.99% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Tigress Financial raised their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $270.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Monday, March 31st. They issued a “hold” rating and a $230.00 price objective for the company. Melius Research upgraded shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Thursday, March 27th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $262.00 price target for the company. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $310.00 to $265.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $271.45.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance

Shares of NYSE RCL traded down $3.09 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $252.33. 246,186 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,285,533. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $212.05 and its 200-day moving average price is $230.06. The stock has a market cap of $68.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.64, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.12. 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 has a one year low of $130.08 and a one year high of $277.08.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $4 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.02 billion. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a return on equity of 48.97% and a net margin of 17.46%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.77 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Royal Caribbean Cruises will post 14.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, February 12th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 1.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 approximately $37,514,907.30. This represents a 28.83% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 14,992 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.86, for a total transaction of $3,925,805.12. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 21,155 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,539,648.30. This trade represents a 41.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 89,992 shares of company stock worth $23,566,445. Insiders own 7.95% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 511.0% during the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,157 shares of the company’s stock valued at $498,000 after purchasing an additional 1,804 shares during the period. Lorne Steinberg Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 4th quarter valued at about $231,000. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 6.3% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,969,532 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,373,856,000 after buying an additional 353,893 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 291,027 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,137,000 after buying an additional 7,740 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dorsey Wright & Associates bought a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $4,221,000. 87.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.