RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) has received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the seven ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $10.79.

Several equities analysts have issued reports on RLJ shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from $10.50 to $9.75 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new position in RLJ Lodging Trust during the 4th quarter valued at $3,678,000. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. bought a new position in RLJ Lodging Trust in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in RLJ Lodging Trust by 5.8% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 890,487 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $9,092,000 after acquiring an additional 48,734 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP bought a new position in RLJ Lodging Trust during the 4th quarter valued at about $9,714,000. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP lifted its stake in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust by 9.8% in the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 225,823 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,306,000 after purchasing an additional 20,100 shares during the period. 92.35% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

RLJ Lodging Trust Stock Up 3.1 %

Shares of RLJ opened at $9.55 on Monday. RLJ Lodging Trust has a 52 week low of $8.74 and a 52 week high of $12.26. The firm has a market cap of $1.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.69. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $9.71 and its 200 day simple moving average is $9.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 2.74 and a current ratio of 2.74.

RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.33 earnings per share 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 company had revenue of $329.99 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $324.66 million. On average, analysts forecast that RLJ Lodging Trust will post 1.37 earnings per share for the current year.

RLJ Lodging Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.28%. RLJ Lodging Trust’s dividend payout ratio is currently 222.22%.

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.