RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) Sets New 12-Month High – Time to Buy?

Shares of RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $11.26 and last traded at $11.2450, with a volume of 1642136 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $11.07.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on RLJ. 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. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on RLJ Lodging Trust from $7.00 to $9.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from $6.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Raymond James Financial downgraded shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from a “strong-buy” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $9.00 to $11.00 in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, UBS Group set a $13.00 price target on shares of RLJ Lodging Trust in a research report on Thursday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $10.56.

RLJ Lodging Trust Trading Up 2.9%

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.74 billion, a PE ratio of -1,142.60 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a quick ratio of 2.89, a current ratio of 2.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $9.25 and its 200 day simple moving average is $8.25.

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, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.07) by $0.02. The company had revenue of $339.98 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $323.51 million. RLJ Lodging Trust had a return on equity of 1.37% and a net margin of 1.84%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.31 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that RLJ Lodging Trust will post 1.26 EPS for the current year.

RLJ Lodging Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be issued a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.3%. RLJ Lodging Trust’s payout ratio is presently -6,000.00%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On RLJ Lodging Trust

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of RLJ. Amundi increased its stake 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 purchasing an additional 9,983 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its holdings 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 in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in RLJ Lodging Trust in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,248,000. Invesco Ltd. boosted 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 worth $11,897,000 after purchasing an additional 526,172 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake 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 purchasing an additional 3,347 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.35% of the company’s stock.

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.