Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc. $APLE Stake Boosted by Centerbridge Partners L.P.

Key Points

• Centerbridge Partners L.P. boosted its Apple Hospitality REIT stake by 88.2% in the fourth quarter, making APLE its largest holding and representing about 84.8% of its portfolio.
• Wall Street sentiment is mixed but slightly cautious: analysts have a consensus Hold rating on APLE, even as Barclays, Cantor Fitzgerald, and BMO Capital Markets raised their price targets to $16.
• Apple Hospitality REIT reported better-than-expected quarterly results with EPS of $0.12 versus $0.11 expected, and it continues to pay a monthly dividend of $0.08 per share, implying a 5.9% annualized yield.

Centerbridge Partners L.P. grew its position in Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc. (NYSE:APLE - Free Report) by 88.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,229,785 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 1,982,000 shares during the quarter. Apple Hospitality REIT comprises approximately 84.8% of Centerbridge Partners L.P.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its biggest holding. Centerbridge Partners L.P. owned about 1.79% of Apple Hospitality REIT worth $50,123,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of APLE. Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in Apple Hospitality REIT by 2.8% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 170,862 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $2,205,000 after purchasing an additional 4,712 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Apple Hospitality REIT by 114.3% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 136,046 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,732,000 after purchasing an additional 72,553 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its holdings in Apple Hospitality REIT by 5.2% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 137,557 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,776,000 after purchasing an additional 6,788 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Apple Hospitality REIT by 295.9% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 2,427 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 1,814 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its holdings in Apple Hospitality REIT by 10,235.7% in the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 21,705 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $280,000 after purchasing an additional 21,495 shares during the last quarter. 89.66% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on APLE shares. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Apple Hospitality REIT from $13.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price target on shares of Apple Hospitality REIT from $14.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on shares of Apple Hospitality REIT in a report on Monday, June 1st. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $15.00 price target on the stock. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH assumed coverage on shares of Apple Hospitality REIT in a report on Thursday, March 26th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $13.00 price target on the stock. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Apple Hospitality REIT from $14.00 to $16.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, June 12th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Apple Hospitality REIT currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $14.44.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple Hospitality REIT

In related news, Chairman Glade M. Knight acquired 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $13.96 per share, with a total value of $69,800.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chairman directly owned 747,191 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,430,786.36. This represents a 0.67% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 6.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Apple Hospitality REIT Price Performance

Shares of APLE opened at $16.25 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.83 billion, a PE ratio of 22.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 8.00 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80. Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc. has a 1-year low of $10.85 and a 1-year high of $16.57. The company's fifty day moving average price is $14.11 and its 200-day moving average price is $12.77.

Apple Hospitality REIT (NYSE:APLE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.12 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.11 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $337.74 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $327.81 million. Apple Hospitality REIT had a net margin of 12.08% and a return on equity of 5.43%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc. will post 1.58 EPS for the current year.

Apple Hospitality REIT Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 29th were issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 29th. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.9%. Apple Hospitality REIT's payout ratio is 131.51%.

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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