On September 23, Royal Caribbean Cruises fell 3.35% in regular trading, trading at $227.67/share, with turnover of $148 million. The decline was triggered by reports that the company is nearing a deal to acquire a majority stake in all-inclusive resort operator Sandals Resorts International, valuing the business at more than $6 billion.

According to reports, if the transaction is completed, Royal Caribbean Cruises would gain control of 20 Sandals hotel resorts across the Caribbean, enabling cross-selling between its cruise operations and land-based vacation offerings. The Sandals founding Stewart family would retain a minority equity stake, with Royal Caribbean becoming the controlling shareholder and potentially acquiring full control over time. The stock had traded as high as $257.80 on September 22, meaning shares have dropped roughly 12% from that level as investors weigh the financial burden of the multi-billion-dollar deal.

Within the Hotels, Resorts & Cruise Lines sector, the broader group traded lower. Among individual stocks, Booking Holdings down 3.6%, Expedia down 4.43%, Airbnb down 3.03%, Carnival down 2.67%, Norwegian Cruise Line down 1.93%.

(The above content is based on publicly available market information, generated by a program or algorithm, and is intended solely as a stock movement alert. It does not constitute investment advice or a basis for trading decisions.)