RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) Upgraded at Wells Fargo & Company

Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) to a strong sell rating in a research report report published on Thursday morning,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on RLJ. Truist Financial lifted their target price on RLJ Lodging Trust from $7.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $13.00 target price (up from $10.00) on shares of RLJ Lodging Trust in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. UBS Group set a $13.00 price target on RLJ Lodging Trust in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH lifted their price target on RLJ Lodging Trust from $9.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded RLJ Lodging Trust from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, June 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $10.83.

RLJ Lodging Trust Trading Up 2.2%

NYSE RLJ opened at $12.32 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $11.00 and its 200 day moving average price is $8.99. RLJ Lodging Trust has a 12 month low of $6.54 and a 12 month high of $12.51. 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 company has a market capitalization of $1.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1,232.50 and a beta of 1.09.

RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $323.51 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.31 earnings per share. RLJ Lodging Trust’s quarterly revenue was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that RLJ Lodging Trust will post 1.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

RLJ Lodging Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.9%. RLJ Lodging Trust’s payout ratio is currently -6,000.00%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On RLJ Lodging Trust

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Amundi grew its holdings in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust by 12.3% during the first quarter. Amundi now owns 90,874 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $717,000 after buying an additional 9,983 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its stake in RLJ Lodging Trust by 11.6% during 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 acquiring an additional 103,065 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in RLJ Lodging Trust during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,248,000. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in RLJ Lodging Trust by 47.5% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,634,179 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $11,897,000 after acquiring an additional 526,172 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in 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 acquiring an additional 3,347 shares during the period. 92.35% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.