Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.40 EPS

01 May 2026, 00:02 by Amy Steele · The Cerbat Gem

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL – Get Free Report) issued its earnings results on Thursday. The company reported $3.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.20 by $0.40, FiscalAI reports. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a net margin of 23.80% and a return on equity of 45.06%. The business had revenue of $4.45 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.46 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.71 EPS. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. Royal Caribbean Cruises updated its Q2 2026 guidance to 3.830-3.930 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance to 17.100-17.500 EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from Royal Caribbean Cruises’ conference call:

Reported Q1 results beat expectations — revenue grew 11% year‑over‑year and Adjusted EPS was $3.60 (about $0.37 above guidance) amid a record wave season delivering ~2.5 million vacations.
Company expects another year of double‑digit revenue and earnings growth with full‑year adjusted EPS guidance of $17.10–$17.50, though the outlook includes a meaningful fuel drag (roughly $0.62 per share) and lower JV contributions.
Geopolitical disruption in the Middle East temporarily affected Mediterranean itineraries (two ships paused) and West Coast Mexico demand, and contributed to higher fuel costs that moderated near‑term booking trends.
Demand and guest engagement remain strong — record pricing and booking volumes, onboard spending above prior years, rising repeat bookings, and higher digital/app penetration supported by loyalty initiatives and the new Royal ONE card.
Balance sheet and capital allocation remain robust with $6.9 billion liquidity, leverage below 3x, a $2.5 billion bond issue to refinance maturities, $836 million of share repurchases this quarter and $1 billion remaining authorization.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Performance

Shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock traded up $10.06 on Thursday, hitting $264.07. The stock had a trading volume of 5,211,773 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,417,451. Royal Caribbean Cruises has a twelve month low of $217.42 and a twelve month high of $366.50. The business’s 50 day moving average is $279.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $285.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77. The stock has a market cap of $70.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.93.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th were issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. This is a boost from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 6th. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio is presently 38.44%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Royal Caribbean Cruises news, insider Laura H. Bethge sold 7,854 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $326.21, for a total transaction of $2,562,053.34. Following the transaction, the insider owned 32,786 shares in the company, valued at $10,695,121.06. This trade represents a 19.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Maritza Gomez Montiel sold 1,385 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $327.18, for a total value of $453,144.30. Following the sale, the director directly owned 12,849 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,203,935.82. This represents a 9.73% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,967,319 shares of company stock valued at $626,681,935. Insiders own 6.95% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Royal Caribbean Cruises

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 12.2% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,312 shares of the company’s stock worth $303,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP boosted its stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 40.8% in the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 20,918 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,297,000 after buying an additional 6,063 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership bought a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,762,000. Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 5.4% during the second quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,772 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,494,000 after buying an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brown Advisory Inc. acquired a new stake in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the second quarter worth approximately $357,000. 87.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Royal Caribbean Cruises News

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

Positive Sentiment: Q1 results beat on the bottom line — Adjusted EPS came in ahead of consensus ($3.60 vs ~$3.20) and revenue roughly matched estimates, signaling strong demand and better-than-expected operating performance. PR Newswire: Q1 Results
Positive Sentiment: Bookings and demand are holding up — Mediterranean itineraries have bounced back despite regional tensions, supporting forward load factors and revenue visibility for peak seasons. TravelPulse: Mediterranean Bookings
Positive Sentiment: Large shareholder returns — The company returned roughly $1.1 billion in the quarter via ~$836M of buybacks and $270M of dividends, which supports EPS and investor sentiment. PR Newswire: Share Repurchases
Neutral Sentiment: Updated FY and Q2 guidance — Management set FY 2026 adjusted EPS at $17.10–$17.50 and Q2 EPS at $3.83–$3.93; the FY range sits near analyst expectations but the Q2 range is below some consensus estimates. That mixed guidance is why some outlets describe the outlook as an “update” rather than a straight upgrade. PR Newswire: Guidance Update
Neutral Sentiment: Valuation perspective — Some analysts note the stock looks fairly priced after the move higher, so future gains may depend on execution against guidance and fuel trends. Motley Fool: Valuation
Negative Sentiment: Rising fuel costs are a clear headwind — Management and multiple outlets flagged higher fuel prices from Middle East tensions as the main near‑term earnings drag; the company trimmed its prior internal range to reflect those costs. Reuters: Fuel Costs / Forecast Cut
Negative Sentiment: Q2 pressure and itinerary changes — Management noted repositioning of ships away from higher‑risk areas and said fuel was the most notable near‑term financial impact, raising the risk of softer near‑term margins. Earnings Call Transcript

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

RCL has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a research note on Wednesday, March 25th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Royal Caribbean Cruises from $318.00 to $327.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $380.00 target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Friday, January 30th. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $330.00 to $310.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $352.89.

View Our Latest Stock Analysis on Royal Caribbean Cruises

About Royal Caribbean Cruises

(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.