RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) Shares Bought by Vanguard Group Inc.

Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) by 0.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 24,816,392 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 87,414 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 15.93% of RLJ Lodging Trust worth $290,848,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust during the 4th quarter worth approximately $13,597,000. Glenmede Trust Co. NA purchased a new stake in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $11,324,000. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd lifted its stake in RLJ Lodging Trust by 4,772.9% during the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 1,175,932 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $13,782,000 after purchasing an additional 1,151,800 shares in the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. purchased a new stake in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust in the 3rd quarter valued at $11,258,000. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in RLJ Lodging Trust during the 4th quarter worth about $11,996,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.35% of the company’s stock.

RLJ Lodging Trust Stock Performance

Shares of RLJ stock opened at $9.63 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $1.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.39, a PEG ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.69. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $10.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $11.18. The company has a current ratio of 2.81, a quick ratio of 2.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. RLJ Lodging Trust has a 12 month low of $9.06 and a 12 month high of $12.39.

RLJ Lodging Trust Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be issued a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.15%. RLJ Lodging Trust’s payout ratio is currently 142.86%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

RLJ has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from $13.00 to $12.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 11th. StockNews.com lowered RLJ Lodging Trust from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $13.58.

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.