RCL
Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.
RCL's fundamentals are strong: revenue grew 9.7% and its operating margin rose 1 points to 28%, though free cash flow fell 26%. At 19x earnings, it's trading right at its usual valuation. Analysts expect that strong growth to continue.
RCL Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Strong | |
| Stable | |
| Under pressure |
RCL's profitability is currently strong, and its revenue and cash flow are stable, but its balance sheet is under pressure.
RCL PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 16x | $276 | -14% |
| Forward | 16x | $322 | — |
| Fair | 19x | $327 | +1.6% |
| Current | 19x | $322 | — |
| Expensive | 25x | $427 | +33% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
RCL's PE is in its fair range at 19x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 16x next year's earnings, in its cheap range.
RCL Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Growth | |
| Strongly improving | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for RCL, with profitability improving.
RCL Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $19.91 | +18% |
| Q3 2026 | $16.89 | +12% |
| Q2 2026 | $16.18 | +19% |
| Q1 2026 | $16.39 | +33% |
| Q4 2025 | $15.61 | +43% |
| Q3 2025 | $15.12 | +54% |
| Q2 2025 | $13.59 | +47% |
| Q1 2025 | $12.29 | +57% |
| Q4 2024 | $10.94 | +73% |
RCL's earnings per share have climbed steadily: $16.89 over the past year, up 12% from the year before, and higher year over year for 20 quarters in a row.
RCL Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $5.6B | +8.8% |
| Q2 2026 | $4.8B | +6.5% |
| Q1 2026 | $4.5B | +11% |
| Q4 2025 | $4.3B | +13% |
| Q3 2025 | $5.1B | +5.2% |
| Q2 2025 | $4.5B | +10% |
| Q1 2025 | $4B | +7.3% |
| Q4 2024 | $3.8B | +13% |
RCL's revenue has grown year over year for 21 quarters in a row: $5.6B last quarter, up 8.8% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 33% | +0.3 points |
| Q2 2026 | 27% | -2.2 points |
| Q1 2026 | 26% | +2.5 points |
| Q4 2025 | 22% | +5.3 points |
| Q3 2025 | 33% | -0.3 points |
| Q2 2025 | 29% | +2.6 points |
| Q1 2025 | 24% | +3.5 points |
| Q4 2024 | 17% | -0.5 points |
RCL's operating margin was 33% last quarter, about level with the same quarter a year ago, near the top of its range since 2019.
RCL Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $937M | +$1.9B |
| Q2 2026 | -$877M | -196% |
| Q1 2026 | $1.3B | +11% |
| Q4 2025 | $116M | -87% |
| Q3 2025 | -$989M | -276% |
| Q2 2025 | $910M | +$1.5B |
| Q1 2025 | $1.2B | +10% |
| Q4 2024 | $915M | +$2.4B |
RCL still generates free cash flow, though less than at its 2026 peak: $1.5B over the past year.
RCL Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | 0% | -- |
| 1 year | -2.2% | -6M shares |
| 3 years | -4.9% | -13.9M shares |
| 5 years | +5.2% | +13.3M shares |
| Available history | +28% | +58.1M shares |
RCL has 268M diluted shares, down 2.2% from a year ago, with $1.5B in buybacks over the past year.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | — |
| Q2 2026 | $199M |
| Q1 2026 | $836M |
| Q4 2025 | $504M |
| Q3 2025 | $414M |
| Q2 2025 | — |
| Q1 2025 | $241M |
| Q3 2020 | — |
RCL spent $1.5B buying back its own shares over the past year.
RCL Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 3.0x | Elevated |
| Q2 2026 | 3.2x | Elevated |
| Q1 2026 | 3.0x | Moderate |
| Q4 2025 | 3.1x | Elevated |
| Q3 2025 | 3.2x | Elevated |
| Q2 2025 | 3.0x | Moderate |
| Q1 2025 | 3.2x | Elevated |
| Q4 2024 | 3.5x | Elevated |
RCL's net debt is about 3.0 years of its operating earnings (EBITDA), down from 3.2 years a year ago.
RCL Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 60.2 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 83.5 | Overbought |
RCL's weekly RSI is 60 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 84 (overbought).
RCL PE vs Consumer Cyclical Sector
| Metric | RCL | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 19x | 18x | 5.8% above |
| PE % | 46 | 47 | 1 pt below |
RCL is trading at 19x earnings, in line with the Consumer Cyclical sector's median of 18x.
RCL Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $289.2 | 11% above |
| 20 week MA | $288.1 | 12% above |
| 50 week MA | $287.5 | 12% above |
| 100 week MA | $279.3 | 15% above |
| 200 week MA | $201.8 | 60% above |
RCL is in an uptrend: it's above all five of its weekly moving averages, and 60% above its 200-week average.
RCL Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $133.3 | $70.7 | -47% |
| 2021 | $70.7 | $79.5 | +13% |
| 2022 | $79.5 | $49.8 | -37% |
| 2023 | $49.8 | $129.5 | +160% |
| 2024 | $129.5 | $232.7 | +80% |
| 2025 | $232.7 | $285.7 | +23% |
| 2026 YTD | $285.7 | $322.0 | +13% |
RCL's yearly returns have swung widely, from +160% in 2023 to −47% in 2020. It's up 13% so far in 2026.