With a market cap of $70.9 billion, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (RCL) is a global vacation leader operating 69 ships across more than 1,000 destinations on all seven continents through its brands Royal Caribbean, Celebrity Cruises, Silversea, and a joint venture with TUI Cruises. With expanding private destinations and upcoming entry into river cruising, the company is building a connected vacation ecosystem that turns unforgettable trips into lifelong travel experiences.
Shares of the Miami, Florida-based company have underperformed the broader market over the past 52 weeks. RCL stock has returned 9.3% over this time frame, while the broader S&P 500 Index ($SPX) has rallied 26.8%. Moreover, shares of the company are down 1.5% on a YTD basis, compared to SPX’s 9.1% rise.
Focusing more closely, shares of the cruise operator have lagged behind the State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR ETF’s (XLY) 10.4% gain over the past 52 weeks.
Shares of Royal Caribbean rose 3.8% on Apr. 30 after the company reported stronger-than-expected Q1 2026 results, with adjusted EPS of $3.60 due to higher revenue, lower costs, and better joint venture performance, while total revenue increased 11% year-over-year to $4.5 billion and load factor reached a robust 109%. Investors were also encouraged by continued strong travel demand following a record WAVE booking season, improving Mediterranean booking trends after temporary geopolitical disruptions, and onboard spending that remained above prior-year levels, helping drive Net Yield growth of 3.6% versus guidance expectations.
In addition, sentiment was supported by the company raising its full-year 2026 adjusted EPS outlook to $17.10 - $17.50 and projecting roughly 10% revenue growth for the year.
For the fiscal year ending in December 2026, analysts expect RCL’s adjusted EPS to grow 10.6% year-over-year to $17.29. The company's earnings surprise history is mixed. It beat the consensus estimates in three of the last four quarters while missing on another occasion.
Among the 25 analysts covering the stock, the consensus rating is a “Moderate Buy.” That’s based on 17 “Strong Buy” ratings, one “Moderate Buy,” and seven “Holds.”
On May 1, Barclays analyst Brandt Montour lowered the price target on Royal Caribbean to $340 while maintaining an “Overweight” rating.
The mean price target of $340.38 represents a premium of 27.1% to RCL's current levels. The Street-high price target of $425 implies a potential upside of 58.7% from the current price levels.
On the date of publication, Sohini Mondal did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
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