Korea Investment CORP Has $45.89 Million Stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. $RCL

Korea Investment CORP reduced its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) by 33.3% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 141,828 shares of the company’s stock after selling 70,947 shares during the quarter. Korea Investment CORP’s holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises were worth $45,893,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 6.4% in the 3rd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 562 shares of the company’s stock valued at $182,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the period. EWA LLC raised its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. EWA LLC now owns 794 shares of the company’s stock valued at $257,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 16.1% in the 2nd quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 252 shares of the company’s stock valued at $79,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,823 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,197,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AA Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 1.5% during the third quarter. AA Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,683 shares of the company’s stock worth $868,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.53% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Arne Alexander Wilhelmsen sold 245,476 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $311.54, for a total transaction of $76,475,593.04. Following the sale, the director owned 16,435,910 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,120,443,401.40. This represents a 1.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 7,854 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $326.21, for a total value of $2,562,053.34. Following the transaction, the insider owned 32,786 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,695,121.06. This trade represents a 19.33% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 1,967,319 shares of company stock valued at $626,681,935 over the last 90 days. 6.95% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Price Performance

NYSE:RCL opened at $278.32 on Monday. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 52 week low of $164.01 and a 52 week high of $366.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.18. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $304.23 and its 200 day simple moving average is $302.08. The firm has a market cap of $75.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.83, a P/E/G ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.87.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $2.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.80. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a net margin of 23.80% and a return on equity of 45.06%. The firm had revenue of $4.26 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.28 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.63 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, December 10th that permits the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to buy up to 2.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. This is an increase from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio is presently 38.44%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target 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. Bank of America raised their price objective on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted 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. Tigress Financial boosted their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $415.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $290.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $348.29.

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.