New York State Common Retirement Fund Decreases Position in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

New York State Common Retirement Fund cut its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 9.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 313,356 shares of the company’s stock after selling 33,281 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned approximately 0.12% of Royal Caribbean Cruises worth $40,576,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. West Branch Capital LLC raised its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 50.0% in the fourth quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 300 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp increased its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 24.6% during the fourth quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 506 shares of the company’s stock valued at $66,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV increased its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 14.3% during the fourth quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 919 shares of the company’s stock valued at $119,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 4,510 shares of the company’s stock valued at $584,000 after buying an additional 128 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ST Germain D J Co. Inc. increased its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 65.0% during the third quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 330 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. 87.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Michael W. Bayley sold 11,753 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.01, for a total value of $1,363,465.53. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 166,537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,319,957.37. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 8.70% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on RCL. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Monday, April 1st. Mizuho initiated coverage on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $164.00 price target for the company. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $148.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Macquarie upped their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Royal Caribbean Cruises currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $136.94.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance

Royal Caribbean Cruises stock opened at $136.68 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $35.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.97, a PEG ratio of 0.50 and a beta of 2.52. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $129.31 and its 200 day moving average is $116.96. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.03. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 52-week low of $59.37 and a 52-week high of $141.70.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.13 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $3.33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.36 billion. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a net margin of 12.22% and a return on equity of 45.55%. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s revenue was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($1.12) earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 9.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.