RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) Stock Rating Upgraded by Zacks Research

RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) was upgraded by stock analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Baird R W downgraded shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Barclays started coverage on shares of RLJ Lodging Trust in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $6.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of RLJ Lodging Trust to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of RLJ Lodging Trust in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $7.50 price objective (down previously from $9.00) on shares of RLJ Lodging Trust in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, RLJ Lodging Trust has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $8.64.

RLJ Lodging Trust Price Performance

Shares of RLJ stock traded down $0.13 on Monday, reaching $7.52. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 270,374 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,391,755. RLJ Lodging Trust has a 1 year low of $6.16 and a 1 year high of $10.24. The company has a market capitalization of $1.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 150.30 and a beta of 1.13. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $7.52 and its 200-day simple moving average is $7.43. The company has a current ratio of 2.55, a quick ratio of 2.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21.

RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.28 by ($0.01). RLJ Lodging Trust had a net margin of 2.48% and a return on equity of 1.78%. The business had revenue of $330.05 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $326.13 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.40 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that RLJ Lodging Trust will post 1.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at RLJ Lodging Trust

In other news, Director Robin Mcbride Zeigler sold 13,413 shares of RLJ Lodging Trust stock in a transaction on Friday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.51, for a total value of $100,731.63. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 37,159 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $279,064.09. The trade was a 26.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 2.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On RLJ Lodging Trust

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust by 0.9% during the second quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 576,941 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $4,235,000 after acquiring an additional 5,401 shares during the period. Savant Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust in the 2nd quarter valued at about $399,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its stake in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust by 36.8% in the 2nd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,282,101 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $16,614,000 after buying an additional 614,166 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust by 2.8% during the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,977,691 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $36,238,000 after buying an additional 137,014 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. increased its stake in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust by 191.1% during the second quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 740,265 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $5,389,000 after buying an additional 485,991 shares during the period. 92.35% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About RLJ Lodging Trust

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.