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Investing.com - UBS raised its price target on Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) to $353.00 from $311.00 on Friday, while maintaining a Buy rating following the cruise operator’s strong second-quarter results. The stock, which has delivered an impressive 100.89% return over the past year, currently trades at a PEG ratio of 0.46, suggesting attractive valuation relative to its growth prospects according to InvestingPro data.
The cruise line reported better-than-expected second-quarter earnings, exceeding both company guidance and market expectations. With revenue growth of 12.09% and a perfect Piotroski Score of 9 as reported by InvestingPro, Royal Caribbean demonstrates strong financial health. UBS noted improvements in Royal Caribbean’s cruise expense guidance for the year, lower interest expenses, and enhanced contribution from TUI (LON:TUIT).
UBS increased its valuation multiple by one point to the upper end of a 14-16x price-to-earnings ratio, which aligns with Royal Caribbean’s trading range over the past three to five years. Previously, the firm had used the upper end of a 13-15x P/E ratio for its valuation model.
The investment bank also raised its 2027 earnings per share estimate to $22.04 from $21.33 previously. This new estimate excludes approximately 30 cents of start-up costs that Royal Caribbean could incur in 2027 related to its river cruise business.
Royal Caribbean has been benefiting from strong demand in the cruise sector, which has seen a robust recovery following the industry-wide shutdown during the pandemic years.
In other recent news, Royal Caribbean Cruises reported its second-quarter 2025 earnings, which revealed an adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $4.38, surpassing the expected $4.08 by 7.35%. Despite this positive EPS result, the company’s revenue slightly missed expectations, coming in at $4.54 billion compared to the forecasted $4.55 billion. Analyst firms have responded with varied opinions on the cruise operator’s stock. Stifel raised its price target to $420 while maintaining a Buy rating, suggesting optimism despite recent stock volatility. Mizuho (NYSE:MFG) also increased its price target to $372 and kept an Outperform rating, although it noted market concerns about the company’s second-half outlook. Bernstein SocGen Group reiterated an Outperform rating with a $360 price target, acknowledging the mixed quarterly results. Meanwhile, Truist Securities maintained a Hold rating with a $337 price target, citing the earnings beat but slightly lower revenues. These developments highlight a range of analyst perspectives following Royal Caribbean’s recent earnings announcement.
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