RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) Downgraded by StockNews.com to “Sell”

StockNews.com lowered shares of RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday morning.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from $10.50 to $9.75 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Truist Financial lowered shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $11.00 to $10.00 in a report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, KeyCorp dropped their price objective on shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from $14.00 to $12.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $10.82.

RLJ Lodging Trust Price Performance

RLJ Lodging Trust stock opened at $7.05 on Tuesday. RLJ Lodging Trust has a 52-week low of $6.16 and a 52-week high of $11.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.31, a PEG ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $8.02 and a 200-day simple moving average of $9.18. The company has a quick ratio of 2.74, a current ratio of 2.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14.

RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.03) by $0.36. RLJ Lodging Trust had a net margin of 5.19% and a return on equity of 3.58%. The business had revenue of $329.99 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $324.66 million. On average, equities analysts anticipate that RLJ Lodging Trust will post 1.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

RLJ Lodging Trust Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st were paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. RLJ Lodging Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 222.22%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Patricia L. Gibson bought 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 28th. The stock was bought at an average price of $8.03 per share, with a total value of $80,300.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 124,217 shares in the company, valued at $997,462.51. This represents a 8.76 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 2.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of RLJ Lodging Trust

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. KBC Group NV acquired a new stake in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust during the first quarter worth about $27,000. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. acquired a new stake in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust by 402.7% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 3,675 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 2,944 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE lifted its position in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust by 78.2% during the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 3,230 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 1,417 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CreativeOne Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust during the fourth quarter worth about $111,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.35% of the company’s stock.

RLJ Lodging Trust Company Profile

RLJ Lodging Trust is a self-advised, publicly traded real estate investment trust that owns primarily premium-branded, high-margin, focused-service and compact full-service hotels. The Company's portfolio currently consists of 96 hotels with approximately 21,200 rooms, located in 23 states and the District of Columbia and an ownership interest in one unconsolidated hotel with 171 rooms.