Key Points
- CFO Naftali Holtz sold 51,131 RCL shares on Feb 13 at an average price of $327.39 for about $16.74M, cutting his direct ownership by 64.5% to 28,116 shares (≈$9.2M).
- Royal Caribbean raised its quarterly dividend to $1.50 ($6.00 annual) and authorized a $2.0B share buyback, while analysts remain broadly positive (average price target ≈$348).
- Recent Q4 showed revenue and EPS growth with strong margins and ROE, but investor concerns include rising capex, a $2.5B senior note issuance and insider selling that could pressure near‑term cash flow sentiment.
Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) CAO Henry Pujol sold 4,442 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $327.99, for a total value of $1,456,931.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 10,067 shares in the company, valued at $3,301,875.33. The trade was a 30.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.
Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Performance
Shares of NYSE RCL opened at $319.26 on Friday. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 12-month low of $164.01 and a 12-month high of $366.50. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $296.69 and a 200 day moving average of $303.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $86.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.91.
Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.80. The firm had revenue of $4.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.28 billion. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a return on equity of 45.06% and a net margin of 23.80%.Royal Caribbean Cruises's revenue was up 13.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.63 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 earnings per share for the current year.
Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be given a dividend of $1.50 per share. 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 an increase from Royal Caribbean Cruises's previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. Royal Caribbean Cruises's payout ratio is presently 25.62%.
Royal Caribbean Cruises declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan 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 stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.
Royal Caribbean Cruises News Roundup
Here are the key news stories impacting Royal Caribbean Cruises this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Q4 2025 results showed solid demand and margin recovery — revenue and EPS rose ~13% and ~36% year‑over‑year, operating profit jumped ~49%, and operating cash generation improved. These fundamentals support analyst bullishness and longer‑term earnings upgrades. RCL Q4 2025 Earnings (QuiverQuant)
- Positive Sentiment: Wall Street remains constructive: broker consensus is around a "Moderate Buy" and many firms maintain buy/overweight ratings with price targets well above current levels — a tailwind for the stock if sentiment persists. Consensus Rating: Moderate Buy (AmericanBankingNews)
- Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research nudged near‑term EPS estimates slightly higher for Q1 and Q2, signaling some upward revision to the company’s short‑term earnings outlook. (These are modest changes but supportive.)
- Neutral Sentiment: Zacks also published longer‑range projections (FY2027/FY2028) that are mixed — a small cut to FY2027 was offset by higher FY2028 expectations — leaving medium‑term consensus roughly intact.
- Negative Sentiment: Royal Caribbean priced $2.5 billion of senior unsecured notes ($1.25B due 2033 at 4.75% and $1.25B due 2038 at 5.25%). The deal increases debt and fixed interest obligations, which can pressure the stock, especially given already elevated capex and leverage metrics. Pricing of Senior Unsecured Notes (PR Newswire) Royal Caribbean Issues $2.5 Billion in Senior Notes (TipRanks)
- Negative Sentiment: High near‑term capital spending: management’s reported capex jumped materially in Q4, and Quiver data shows insider sales in recent months — both factors can worry investors about future free cash flow and signal reduced insider conviction. Capex & Insider Activity (QuiverQuant)
Institutional Trading of Royal Caribbean Cruises
A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of RCL. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,021,893,000. Capital International Investors lifted its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 9.8% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 25,747.4% in 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 worth $335,307,000 after buying an additional 1,197,510 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors grew its holdings in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 20,176,544 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,627,669,000 after buying an additional 920,042 shares in the last quarter. 87.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several equities analysts have weighed in on RCL shares. Mizuho set a $379.00 price target on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Friday, January 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $310.00 to $370.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $373.00 to $383.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Sunday, February 1st. Susquehanna set a $350.00 price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises and gave the company a "positive" rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research report on Friday, December 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Royal Caribbean Cruises has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $348.29.
Read Our Latest Report on Royal Caribbean Cruises
Royal Caribbean Cruises Company Profile
(
Get Free Report)
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.
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