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

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

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen raised RLJ Lodging Trust from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, June 7th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised their price objective on shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from $9.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. UBS Group set a $13.00 target price on shares of RLJ Lodging Trust in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Raymond James Financial lowered shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from a “strong-buy” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $9.00 to $11.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from $6.00 to $9.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $10.56.

RLJ Lodging Trust Trading Down 2.0%

Shares of RLJ Lodging Trust stock opened at $11.40 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $1.73 billion, a PE ratio of -1,140.30 and a beta of 1.09. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $10.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $8.62. RLJ Lodging Trust has a 1 year low of $6.54 and a 1 year high of $12.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 2.89 and a quick ratio of 2.89.

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. Equities research analysts predict that RLJ Lodging Trust will post 1.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On RLJ Lodging Trust

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust by 2,721.1% in 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 last quarter. Daytona Street Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its position in RLJ Lodging Trust by 166.8% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 4,618 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 2,887 shares during the last quarter. Danske Bank A S acquired a new stake in RLJ Lodging Trust during the third quarter worth about $50,000. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in RLJ Lodging Trust during the fourth quarter worth about $51,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.