RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) Shares Acquired by Vert Asset Management LLC

Vert Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) by 22.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 74,557 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 13,831 shares during the period. Vert Asset Management LLC’s holdings in RLJ Lodging Trust were worth $588,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Woodline Partners LP purchased a new position in RLJ Lodging Trust in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $9,714,000. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust by 18.6% during the 4th quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. now owns 5,756,233 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $58,771,000 after acquiring an additional 901,111 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its position in RLJ Lodging Trust by 58.5% during the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,398,066 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $24,486,000 after purchasing an additional 885,071 shares during the period. Invenomic Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in RLJ Lodging Trust in the 4th quarter valued at $9,036,000. Finally, Man Group plc raised its position in RLJ Lodging Trust by 300.6% in the fourth quarter. Man Group plc now owns 712,904 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $7,279,000 after purchasing an additional 534,938 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.35% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on RLJ shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded RLJ Lodging Trust from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Truist Financial lowered shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $11.00 to $10.00 in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Oppenheimer lowered their price target on shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from $12.00 to $11.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from $10.50 to $9.75 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, KeyCorp decreased their price objective on shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from $14.00 to $12.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $10.68.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Patricia L. Gibson bought 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 28th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $8.03 per share, for a total transaction of $80,300.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 124,217 shares in the company, valued at approximately $997,462.51. The trade was a 8.76% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 2.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

RLJ Lodging Trust Stock Performance

Shares of RLJ Lodging Trust stock opened at $7.43 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $1.13 billion, a PE ratio of 25.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.48. RLJ Lodging Trust has a 1 year low of $6.16 and a 1 year high of $10.84. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $7.15 and its 200-day simple moving average is $8.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 2.74 and a current ratio of 2.74.

RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) last issued its earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.30 by $0.01. RLJ Lodging Trust had a return on equity of 3.58% and a net margin of 5.19%. The company had revenue of $328.12 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $328.08 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.33 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that RLJ Lodging Trust will post 1.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

RLJ Lodging Trust Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.07%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. RLJ Lodging Trust’s dividend payout ratio 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.