Brokerages Set RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) PT at $10.82

RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) has been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the eight research firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have assigned a hold recommendation and three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $10.82.

A number of brokerages have weighed in on RLJ. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on RLJ Lodging Trust from $10.50 to $9.75 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Truist Financial cut RLJ Lodging Trust from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $11.00 to $10.00 in a research note on Friday, March 21st. KeyCorp cut their price target on RLJ Lodging Trust from $14.00 to $12.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 24th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th.

RLJ Lodging Trust Trading Down 4.0 %

Shares of RLJ Lodging Trust stock opened at $6.83 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $1.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.51. 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 has a 12-month low of $6.50 and a 12-month high of $11.99. The business’s 50 day moving average is $9.09 and its 200-day moving average is $9.52.

RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 firm had revenue of $329.99 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $324.66 million. Equities research analysts predict that RLJ Lodging Trust will post 1.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

RLJ Lodging Trust Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.79%. RLJ Lodging Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 222.22%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Patricia L. Gibson purchased 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 28th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $8.03 per share, for a total transaction of $80,300.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 124,217 shares in the company, valued at approximately $997,462.51. This represents a 8.76 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 2.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On RLJ Lodging Trust

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Woodline Partners LP bought a new position in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust in the fourth quarter worth $9,714,000. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. increased its holdings in RLJ Lodging Trust by 18.6% in the 4th quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. now owns 5,756,233 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $58,771,000 after buying an additional 901,111 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its holdings in RLJ Lodging Trust by 58.5% in the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,398,066 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $24,486,000 after buying an additional 885,071 shares during the period. Invenomic Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $9,036,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust by 294.1% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 841,753 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $7,727,000 after acquiring an additional 628,157 shares in the last quarter. 92.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.