RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) Shares Gap Down Following Analyst Downgrade

RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ)’s share price gapped down prior to trading on Monday after Truist Financial lowered their price target on the stock from $10.00 to $7.00. The stock had previously closed at $7.43, but opened at $7.26. Truist Financial currently has a hold rating on the stock. RLJ Lodging Trust shares last traded at $7.43, with a volume of 122,791 shares changing hands.

Several other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on RLJ. KeyCorp decreased their price target on RLJ Lodging Trust from $14.00 to $12.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 24th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from $10.50 to $9.75 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Oppenheimer dropped their target price on shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from $12.00 to $11.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $10.25.

Insider Transactions at RLJ Lodging Trust

In other news, Director Patricia L. Gibson bought 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 28th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $8.03 per share, with a total value of $80,300.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 124,217 shares in the company, valued at $997,462.51. This represents a 8.76% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 2.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On RLJ Lodging Trust

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Inspire Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust by 10.7% during the 1st quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 43,412 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $343,000 after purchasing an additional 4,206 shares in the last quarter. Strs Ohio bought a new stake in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust in the 1st quarter valued at about $226,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its stake in RLJ Lodging Trust by 11.6% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 993,552 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $7,839,000 after purchasing an additional 103,065 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP grew its holdings in RLJ Lodging Trust by 192.4% during the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 2,782,181 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $21,951,000 after purchasing an additional 1,830,803 shares during the period. Finally, Aristeia Capital L.L.C. acquired a new position in RLJ Lodging Trust during the first quarter worth approximately $294,000. 92.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

RLJ Lodging Trust Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $1.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.64, a PEG ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.48. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $7.14 and a 200-day moving average price of $8.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 2.74 and a quick ratio of 2.74.

RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $328.12 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $328.08 million. RLJ Lodging Trust had a net margin of 5.19% and a return on equity of 3.58%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.33 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that RLJ Lodging Trust will post 1.37 earnings per share for the current year.

RLJ Lodging Trust Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.07%. RLJ Lodging Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 230.77%.

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.