RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a note issued to investors on Monday.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on RLJ. 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. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of RLJ Lodging Trust in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $15.00 target price on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, RLJ Lodging Trust presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $13.90.

RLJ Lodging Trust Trading Down 0.9 %

RLJ opened at $11.01 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.71 billion, a PE ratio of 34.39, a P/E/G ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 3.46 and a quick ratio of 3.46. RLJ Lodging Trust has a 12-month low of $9.06 and a 12-month high of $12.39. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $11.70 and its 200 day moving average price is $11.22.

RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 26th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.30 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $319.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $313.34 million. RLJ Lodging Trust had a net margin of 5.76% and a return on equity of 3.79%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.33 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that RLJ Lodging Trust will post 1.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On RLJ Lodging Trust

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Ziegler Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in RLJ Lodging Trust in the 4th quarter valued at about $984,000. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd boosted its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 1,151,800 shares during the period. Jump Financial LLC bought a new position in RLJ Lodging Trust in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $747,000. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. acquired a new stake in RLJ Lodging Trust in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $11,258,000. Finally, Alexander Randolph Advisory Inc. bought a new stake in RLJ Lodging Trust during the 4th quarter valued at $5,381,000. 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.