StockNews.com Lowers RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) to Sell

StockNews.com downgraded shares of RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report published on Thursday morning.

Separately, Oppenheimer upped their price target on RLJ Lodging Trust from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, RLJ Lodging Trust has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $13.90.

RLJ Lodging Trust Price Performance

NYSE RLJ opened at $10.07 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $11.14 and a 200 day moving average price of $11.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 2.81 and a current ratio of 2.81. The company has a market cap of $1.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.96, a P/E/G ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.70. RLJ Lodging Trust has a one year low of $9.06 and a one year high of $12.39.

RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 26th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by $0.04. RLJ Lodging Trust had a net margin of 5.29% and a return on equity of 3.53%. The business had revenue of $319.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $313.34 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.33 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that RLJ Lodging Trust will post 1.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

RLJ Lodging Trust Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 29th were paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.97%. RLJ Lodging Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 142.86%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On RLJ Lodging Trust

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of RLJ. Hazelview Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in RLJ Lodging Trust in the 1st quarter valued at about $82,000. Beverly Hills Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $98,000. Metis Global Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust in the 4th quarter worth approximately $122,000. Stevens Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in RLJ Lodging Trust in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $128,000. Finally, BOKF NA purchased a new stake in RLJ Lodging Trust in the first quarter valued at approximately $139,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.35% of the company’s stock.

About RLJ Lodging Trust

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.