Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. $RCL Shares Acquired by Raiffeisen Bank International AG

Raiffeisen Bank International AG lifted its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 53.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,856 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,688 shares during the period. Raiffeisen Bank International AG’s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $1,587,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,021,893,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 3.2% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 29,604,177 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,270,252,000 after acquiring an additional 929,414 shares during the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises in the second quarter worth approximately $172,488,000. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 7,971.4% during the 2nd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 540,222 shares of the company’s stock worth $169,165,000 after acquiring an additional 533,529 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 91.7% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,087,660 shares of the company’s stock valued at $340,590,000 after purchasing an additional 520,353 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Royal Caribbean Cruises

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

• Positive Sentiment: Company raised its quarterly dividend to $1.50 (annualized $6.00); ex‑dividend/record/pay dates disclosed — a cash return boost that supports shareholder sentiment. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Board-authorized $2.0 billion share buyback program—management signaling conviction in long‑term value, which can support the stock and EPS. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Board upgrade — appointment of Christopher J. Wiernicki adds maritime/regulatory expertise that could improve governance and operational oversight. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst coverage remains constructive: several firms have raised targets or reiterated buys (consensus price target near $348), which can attract investor interest but is not an immediate catalyst. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Positive media/momentum stories (Zacks, FXEmpire) highlight RCL as a long‑term value/flow beneficiary — may support continued inflows but not a near‑term driver by itself. Read More. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Large, repeated insider selling by director Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen across Feb. 13–19 (multiple transactions totaling hundreds of thousands of shares, tens of millions of dollars) — a clear short‑term negative signal that has pressured the stock. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Additional insider disposals (Laura H. Bethge, Maritza Gomez Montiel) in the same window amplify the selling signal and raise near‑term concern about insider conviction. Read More. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Rising crude / fuel costs: coverage flags that oil near multi‑month highs can hit margins quickly for cruise operators (especially with notable leverage), creating downside risk to earnings and multiples. Read More.

Insider Transactions at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In related news, Director Maritza Gomez Montiel sold 1,385 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $327.18, for a total transaction of $453,144.30. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 12,849 shares in the company, valued at $4,203,935.82. This represents a 9.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael W. Bayley sold 80,000 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $326.82, for a total transaction of $26,145,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 58,108 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,990,856.56. This represents a 57.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 722,164 shares of company stock worth $233,668,845 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 6.95% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $373.00 to $383.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Sunday, February 1st. Barclays lifted their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $324.00 to $361.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $368.00 to $371.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $310.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $380.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. One research 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Royal Caribbean Cruises has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $348.29.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Up 1.6%

RCL opened at $315.34 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $302.05 and its 200-day simple moving average is $303.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.18. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a one year low of $164.01 and a one year high of $366.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $85.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 1.91.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $2.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.80. The firm had revenue of $4.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 was up 13.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.63 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 EPS for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Wednesday, December 10th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 2.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. This is a positive change from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.62%.

Royal Caribbean Cruises 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.