grandgeezer

17 minutes ago, jerryg95 said:

maybe that comp is enough for the house you want but what if he wants a $40m house and only has $20m liquid. 
 

what if he’s want to buy virgin or Viking stock to diversify. What if he wants to rent a private mega yacht for a few months so he doesn’t have to wait in line at the Windjammer?

That still doesn’t eliminate that maybe he wants to take the money because he thinks the stock has peaked and he wants to hedge his bet. More of a maybe than the options listed above.

4 hours ago, jerryg95 said:

Or they want to buy a house, car, need cash or want to diversify. 

If you check their total compensation for 2023 (public company, public record), I think you can eliminate the first three. Upper executives were well in the millions, with the CEOs total about $17,000,000, up from a measly 10.700,000 the previous year. Any other guesses?

1 hour ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

I’m not actively trading cruise stock at this time so I’m out of the loop, but this came across my desk. Thought some of you may find it interesting to note. 
 

 

 

insider trading of RCL the last year- 

If upper management is unloading stock, that should tell you volumes on how they see the future playing out.

21 minutes ago, livingonthebeach said:

 

Some people truly benefited from the Pandemic, i.e. Big Pharma, PPE suppliers (masks, sanitizer, germ killers) not to mention toilet paper and paper towel makers. Some really gauged people who were vulnerable.

 

But buying stock at lower prices benefited not only the stockholder but helped get Royal get back on its feet. You did very well for yourself and in a good way. Congrats!

The only way the rise in the stock price benefited Royal is if they sold some of their stock that they held back.

As far as the stockholder unless he sold, it’s a gain on paper and nothing else.

5 hours ago, BND said:

You can absolutely purchase 24 hour increments of internet.  You can also buy an internet package prorated on any day.  Pretty sure drink packages are for the length of cruise only.

Unless things have changed post shutdown, you can buy the drink package whenever you want but it has to be for all the remaining days of the cruise.

2 hours ago, S.A.M.J.R. said:

You're missing the point.  The $1000 price is BEFORE gratuities.  At issue is why Royal doesn't just up the cruise fare to include gratuities.  Because they want to advertise the price without the grats.  It looks better when people are shopping.

 

Look at how many people ask "Is 30% off the best deal on the ultimate drink package"?  

If people are that gullible, they deserve what they get. When you price a cruise on line, you are asked if you want to include gratuities now. Right there yo know the difference, it stops looking better and you move on one way or the other.

As far as the drink price deal mentioned, I don’t have a comment except anything over free is too much.

You can fool some of the people all of the time.

1 hour ago, S.A.M.J.R. said:

I'm betting it has something to do with showing a lower fare for passengers.  Tell me which would you book?

 

$1000pp for a seven day cruise

or

$1126pp for a seven day cruise

 

Of course, if you purchase the $1000 cruise, later on you find out they want to tack on an extra $126.  So you're paying the same, but $1000 looks better.  

Looks better? The only one you’re fooling is yourself. A person could book the $1,000 p.p. and remove the grats at the front desk at the end of the cruise like they are currently doing. Your example gains nothing.

2 hours ago, A&L_Ont said:

 

 

Only way this will happen is if RC rolls all tips into the actual cruise cost, and not as an additional charge prior to boarding the shop or a daily charge during the cruise.  Until then it will be debated weekly, if not daily. 

I’ve been on these boards for over twenty years, and the tipping situation has been a subject the whole while. It seems like an easy fix, just roll them into the total price, so why hasn’t it been done? I’m betting it has something to do with $$$$ in the cruise lines bottom line, what it is I couldn’t even guess. Until then nothing is going to change. 

Can anybody say, with certainty that the cruise price dropped when the prepaid gratuities was taken off the AI and suites and passed on to the customer? Why not? I’ll give you three guesses and the first two don’t count.

13 hours ago, xpcdoojk said:

Year over year….  You watch every single company traded on the stock market?  Amazing.

Who would write yoy, this year? That makes it this year only.

Where did I say I watch every single stock on the stock market? If I find one I might be interested in, I do a deep dive, and it confirms my feeling I buy, if not I pass. This strategy has worked very well over the past 35 years. It allowed me to retire at 55. I’ve not paid a penny interest on anything since 1985, and my mrd from my 401k, investment income is almost double the total of my pension and my wife’s and mine social security. And we lived the “life of Riley” the whole time, we have everything we want and did everything we wanted to do.

Amazing!

On 4/12/2024 at 11:18 AM, firefly333 said:

Oil green today and iran still a worry.

 

As a interesting sidenote, this last unemployment numbers showed number of foreign born who got new jobs. Never seen this emphasized before. Twice as many foreign born got jobs as nationals who lost jobs.

 

The fed keeps citing how tight the labor market is when they are debating rate cuts. Adding in "foreign born" who took new jobs is kinda like "hey dummies... of course the labor market is tight and going to stay that way with new workers coming in. I think the fed might have to change its thought process a bit. Inflation isnt tamed is also echoing thru the market.

 

Higher oil and higher interest rates weigh on rcl. Yes I've read rcl hedges oil out 6 months, dont know if still true... but people trade on emotions. Risks. 

 

One other bit is they made drilling in the Yukon or wherever it's called more expensive by a LOT. Huge jump in price to drill and they have to pay royalties, not sure who to, but oil under pressure from this news.

 

 

8 hours ago, firefly333 said:

Another analyst has a new target of 164 out yesterday morning. Mazxxxx forgot the name.

 

Oil sold off yesterday during the day, rcl inverse reaction. Went from red to green and moving green today. I dont see the price increases like in the past, by next year will have trouble replicating the 40% yoy this year. But for now growth is going to show great. 

What’s yoy? I’ve been active in the stock market for over 35 years, and with all the due diligence I’ve done, yoy has never shown up.

?

The way I understand it, a courtesy hold is just that. Normally it’s 24 hours, then if nothing happens it just goes away. We’ve done several and never had to put down a deposit.

Maybe things changed since our last cruise in October 2019.

46 minutes ago, john91498 said:

Interesting responses. I've made lots of money in the market and I've lost lots of money. The market paid for my house and a few of my toys including my Corvette.

 

Sometimes, it's more lucky that being good.

One of my favorite quotes, “The harder you work, the luckier you get.”

59 minutes ago, nelblu said:

Why are you even on this board.😜

I have as much right to post my opinion on this board as anybody. Just because they don’t jive with all the other ones doesn’t make we wrong.

The cherry on top of the cake is irritating know it alls that can’t accept that someone feels different than they do.

22 minutes ago, Stockjock said:

One of my clients (w/a big Wall Street firm) is a retired U.S. Navy Commander, who graduated from the Naval Academy in Annapolis.  I posted something about Capt. Kate on social media awhile back.  He read up on her and said, "Captain Kate has earned her stripes,  She's the real deal.  Captain Kate is a rock star."

I doubt a high ranking officer in the military and a cruise ship captain have much in common. He has his right to his opinion but that’s all it is.

5 hours ago, Scottdalfonso said:

Not gonna lie, first thing I thought was, maybe they'll build the new bridge higher, at least. 

It sounds like a mechanical issue on the container ship, height wouldn’t make a difference. They have had ships going in and out of the port for years.

13 minutes ago, xpcdoojk said:

I just did a math guess of 3% required withdrawal, and rounded it up to the next million.  We don’t know when the poster started withdrawing so 3%, 4%, 5% all are options.  Maybe even 2%.  I am not an expert on this, but yeah, you are probably correct.  I, personally, can’t think why I would feel the need to share this information, but hey, it is all good.  🤣. Nothing scary out here on the internet.

 

jc

 

 

The number is the minimum amount you have to withdraw without paying a penalty of 30% of the shortcoming.

I agree, you are far from being an expert.

12 minutes ago, xpcdoojk said:

Congrats on your 2 million in 401K…. Buying a million worth of RCL is a bad investment, buying 100 shares and cruising a lot… is a no-brainer.  

 

95% of the people ( I am guessing but bet I am right) own more than 100 and less than 200 shares.  If you cruise 4 to 5 times a year you could make gains of more than about any regular investment I know of.  That said, buying a stock like RCL is not a real investment it is a fun activity that you enjoy.  The Shareholder benefit while it is combinable is wonderful luxury.  

 

JC<——— spent a lot of time in gradual school in economics (no misspelling).  

What makes you think I have $2,000,000 in my 401k? Not even close. The RMD is based on your age and account balance at the close of business on 12/31 of the previous year. Last year it was only $47,000.

I have never owned RCL stock and never will, even when it dropped below $20.  I’ve been doing stocks for over 35 and have been successful far better than I ever imagined. For me to buy a stock, it has to be a product I believe in and the management team has past experience in fairly treating their employees and customers, RCL is O for 2.

7 hours ago, Ourusualbeach said:

Thanks for that update.  Totally agree that with their included 2 perks their loyalty program really does not have a lot of benefits

I don’t know, but we are Elite+ on Celebrity and we sort of like the two bags of free laundry, and 240 minutes of internet, per cruise, is nice.

We never get the drink package. We are Diamond on RCL and Elite+ on Celebrity so we get more drinks, for free, than we normally drink. It’ll be a cold day in h - ll before we change our habits just to get “our moneys worth”.

2 hours ago, CHEZMARYLOU said:

With the current price of potato chips, on the high side of $6 a bag here, it could now be classified as fine dining.

Potato chips just went up to $2.99 recently, it had been $1.99 for years. The weight is down to 8.5 ounces. Still not fine dining in my book.

This is in Phoenix.

4 hours ago, sheezsmith said:

So all the crew that clean up after you, hallways, stairways, restrooms etc get nothing, if you can afford a cruise, you can afford to pay all of the crew a small gratuity!! 

Where does it say they couldn’t afford it?

43 minutes ago, Seville2Cabo said:

My numbers are based on when I bought the Royal stock I currently have and the difference if I would have bought a S&P fund.  

 

 

Since the IPO, Royal is up 1,395% versus the S&P at 1.061%.  

 

Not sure I understand your point about having to spend money.  I was / am going to spend it anyway, so it is just a bonus.  I never book a cruise for the OBC or points - we book what we want.  The OBC is just a bonus.

 

 

 

Royal Caribbean Cruises Return vs. S&P

	1 YEAR	5 YEAR	5 YEAR ANNUALIZED	SINCE IPO
RCL	+71.39%	+1.35%	+0.27%	+1,395%
S&P	+27.46%	+82.16%	+12.74%	+1,061%

This is not comparing apples with apples. You are comparing it to the S&P 500. I’m comparing it to my S&P 500 Index Fund. There is a huge difference, the S&P 500 is based the cost of one share of each. The S&P 500 Index Fund has to own at least one share of each stock but they can load up on the ones they think will make them money. some of their biggest holdings are well into 

2 hours ago, Seville2Cabo said:

I've had RC stock for about 20 years.  Average return - 15% - S&P over the same period - under 7%, and that does not include the OBC.

 

Picking the right date can make the number come out any way you want.  

Here’s some new data for you. RCL stock since IPO in 1993. Up 1,235.27 %.  S&P 500 Index fund since first offered in 1984. Up 3,141.97%. These numbers are updated as the price changes. This is on msn.com. Where do your numbers come from or are they skewed in your favor?

I don’t how you can count shareholder obc as you have to pay a ton of money to get it. 

20 minutes ago, Engineroom Snipe said:

But look at the big picture for many loyal cruisers. You get a $200 credit for each cruise plus dividends and 6.5% increases. This could appear to be quite nice. Three cruises a year and dividends on the minimum stock shares to qualify for a discount gets you about $1000.

 

Invest the same money in other stocks, like the chip and AI stocks, get more than 20% increases (100% in some cases), higher dividends and have $1000+ towards each cruise.

 

It all depends upon your goals and appetite for risk.

 

If anyone bought the stocks at their lows, bravo, you have done well. Purchasing it now is only going to give you incremental gains since the lions share of growth after the pandemic is done.

Where is the dividend coming from? RCL hasn’t paid one in several years.

I’ve been in the stock market for over 35 years and reached financial gain way beyond my wildest dreams. I have a 401k, and by law, I have to take a minimal withdrawal every year, for 2024 it’s $58,000+ and that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

For those that bought the stock below $20 and held on to it, good for you. But like an economic professor said after someone brought up a similar situation many many years ago “Even a blind squirrel finds an acorn once in awhile”. 
Long term, cruise line stocks have not been a good investment. Five years ago, if you stuck equal amounts in RCL stock and a S&P 500 mutual fund, as of close of business today, the RCL stock would be up a total of 1.35%. The mutual fund would be up 82.16%.

Finally, to get the shareholder obc you have to book a cruise each time to get it. The mutual fund pays capital gains and dividends without another penny out your pocket.

You can take it in cash, or reinvest it.

1 hour ago, Engineroom Snipe said:

"What a tangled web we weave."  (Marmion, Sir Walter Scott, circa 1811). There are so many moving parts to such a decision that the bean counters do not take into consideration.

 

Something as simple as a "baggage fee" can come with a lot of baggage in the process (pun intended).

 

😉

You think the couldn’t learn from the airlines and any other business that do this? The tens or hundreds of millions of dollars, available for all the cruise lines, would be worth the temporary headaches that might occur. What other options are available besides the usual raise costs and cutback on all the other pieces of the product being offered?😂