Apple Hospitality REIT (NYSE:APLE) Stock Rating Upgraded by Wells Fargo & Company

Key Points

• Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Apple Hospitality REIT to a hold rating, adding to a mixed analyst picture that still leaves the stock with a consensus Hold rating and an average price target of $16.00.
• Recent analyst moves were varied: Zacks Research upgraded the stock to strong-buy, while Barclays, JPMorgan, and Bank of America maintained more cautious views but lifted their price targets to around $16-$17.
• Apple Hospitality REIT recently beat quarterly expectations with $0.12 EPS versus $0.11 expected and revenue of $337.74 million, and the stock has traded near its 52-week high after opening at $16.78.

Apple Hospitality REIT (NYSE:APLE - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Wells Fargo & Company to a "hold" rating in a research report issued on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of Apple Hospitality REIT from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings upgraded Apple Hospitality REIT from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Barclays reissued an "equal weight" rating and issued a $17.00 price objective (up from $16.00) on shares of Apple Hospitality REIT in a report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Apple Hospitality REIT from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on Apple Hospitality REIT from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Apple Hospitality REIT has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $16.00.

Apple Hospitality REIT Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE APLE opened at $16.78 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. Apple Hospitality REIT has a 12 month low of $10.85 and a 12 month high of $17.13. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $16.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $13.65. The stock has a market cap of $3.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.98, a PEG ratio of 3.25 and a beta of 0.87.

Apple Hospitality REIT (NYSE:APLE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.12 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.11 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $337.74 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $327.81 million. Apple Hospitality REIT had a net margin of 12.08% and a return on equity of 5.43%. As a group, analysts predict that Apple Hospitality REIT will post 1.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Apple Hospitality REIT

In related news, Chairman Glade M. Knight acquired 5,000 shares of Apple Hospitality REIT stock in a transaction on Monday, May 11th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $13.96 per share, for a total transaction of $69,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman owned 747,191 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,430,786.36. The trade was a 0.67% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 6.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Apple Hospitality REIT

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Apple Hospitality REIT in the 4th quarter valued at about $40,950,000. Centerbridge Partners L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT by 88.2% during the fourth quarter. Centerbridge Partners L.P. now owns 4,229,785 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $50,123,000 after acquiring an additional 1,982,000 shares during the last quarter. UBS Group AG lifted its position in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT by 60.8% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 4,721,481 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $55,950,000 after acquiring an additional 1,786,018 shares in the last quarter. Rush Island Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT in the first quarter valued at approximately $17,143,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT in the fourth quarter worth approximately $13,361,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.66% of the company's stock.

Apple Hospitality REIT Company Profile

Apple Hospitality REIT NYSE: APLE is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that focuses on acquiring, owning and operating high-quality, upscale, select-service hotels. The company's portfolio primarily consists of properties operated under premium franchise agreements with leading lodging brands such as Marriott, Hilton and Hyatt. Apple Hospitality REIT is self-managed and internally advised, overseeing property management, revenue optimization and asset-level operations through its in-house team of hospitality professionals.

The company's holdings encompass over 200 hotels featuring more than 30,000 guest rooms across a diverse array of markets in the United States.

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