Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has agreed to repurchase the company’s 3.5 million shares of common stock held by Awilhelmsen AS (Awilhelmsen), for a price of USD 67.45 per share.
The repurchase is expected to close on November 6, 2014. Following the sale of common stock, Awilhelmsen, together with its affiliates, will own approximately 16% of RCL’s outstanding common stock. RCL will fund the transaction with cash on hand.
“Our Board of Directors and management team believe in the long-term health and profitability of the company. We believe this is an opportunistic repurchase transaction, which uses our cash on hand, is accretive to per-share earnings, and is beneficial to all shareholders of RCL,” said Richard D. Fain, RCL Chairman and CEO.
Press Release