RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) Reaches New 52-Week High – Here’s Why

RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $10.91 and last traded at $10.9590, with a volume of 96134 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $10.64.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

RLJ has been the topic of several research reports. Barclays increased their price target on shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from $6.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Truist Financial reduced their price target on shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from $8.00 to $7.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from $7.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $8.67.

RLJ Lodging Trust Trading Up 1.9%

The business’s 50-day moving average price is $8.79 and its 200-day moving average price is $8.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 2.89 and a quick ratio of 2.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.65 billion, a PE ratio of -1,084.50 and a beta of 1.13.

RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 4th. The real estate investment trust reported ($0.05) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.07) by $0.02. RLJ Lodging Trust had a net margin of 1.84% and a return on equity of 1.37%. The firm had revenue of $339.98 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $323.51 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.31 EPS. RLJ Lodging Trust’s quarterly revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that RLJ Lodging Trust will post 1.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

RLJ Lodging Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were issued a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.5%. RLJ Lodging Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -6,000.00%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in RLJ. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust by 2,721.1% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,470 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 3,347 shares during the last quarter. Daytona Street Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust by 166.8% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 4,618 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 2,887 shares during the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust during the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Danske Bank A S acquired a new position in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust during the 3rd quarter worth $50,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.35% of the company’s stock.

RLJ Lodging Trust Company Profile

RLJ Lodging Trust is a self-managed, publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires, owns and operates premium-branded, focused-service and compact full-service hotels. The company’s portfolio is concentrated in major U.S. markets, targeting properties that benefit from strong corporate and leisure demand, limited new supply and established brand affiliations.

The trust’s hotels are affiliated with leading global lodging brands across the spectrum of service levels, including lifestyle and upscale segments.