Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) Director Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen Sells 356,026 Shares

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) Director Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 356,026 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $318.39, for a total value of $113,355,118.14. Following the transaction, the director owned 16,681,386 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,311,186,488.54. The trade was a 2.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

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 transaction of $76,475,593.04.
• On Wednesday, February 25th, Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 170,105 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $315.92, for a total transaction of $53,739,571.60.
• 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 value 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 value 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%

RCL opened at $310.49 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $304.59 and its 200 day moving average price is $303.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77, a current ratio of 0.18 and a quick ratio of 0.16. The stock has a market cap of $84.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.89, a P/E/G ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.91. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 12 month low of $164.01 and a 12 month high of $366.50.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $2.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.80. The company 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 company’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.63 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, December 10th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 2.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a 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 25.62%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on RCL shares. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $290.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Truist Financial decreased their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $321.00 to $318.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $380.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $310.00 to $370.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Royal Caribbean Cruises currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $348.29.

More Royal Caribbean Cruises News

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.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Royal Caribbean Cruises

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the second quarter valued at $1,021,893,000. Capital International Investors raised its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 9.8% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 36,165,358 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,088,156,000 after buying an additional 3,215,382 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 25,747.4% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,202,161 shares of the company’s stock valued at $335,307,000 after buying an additional 1,197,510 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 3.2% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 29,604,177 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,270,252,000 after buying an additional 929,414 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 20,176,544 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,627,669,000 after buying an additional 920,042 shares during the period. 87.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Company 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.