RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) Shares Bought by Vanguard Group Inc.

Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) by 0.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 24,816,392 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 87,414 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 0.16% of RLJ Lodging Trust worth $290,848,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Armistice Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust in the 4th quarter valued at $2,930,000. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in RLJ Lodging Trust by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 180,900 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,120,000 after acquiring an additional 6,100 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in RLJ Lodging Trust in the fourth quarter valued at $258,000. Clearbridge Investments LLC grew its position in RLJ Lodging Trust by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,316,177 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $15,426,000 after acquiring an additional 9,086 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust in the 4th quarter worth about $11,996,000. 92.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

RLJ has been the subject of a number of research reports. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on RLJ Lodging Trust from $13.00 to $12.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 11th. StockNews.com lowered shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $13.58.

RLJ Lodging Trust Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:RLJ opened at $9.63 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $10.19 and its 200 day simple moving average is $11.18. The company has a market cap of $1.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.39, a PEG ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 2.81 and a current ratio of 2.81. RLJ Lodging Trust has a one year low of $9.06 and a one year high of $12.39.

RLJ Lodging Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.15%. RLJ Lodging Trust’s dividend payout ratio is currently 142.86%.

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.