Victory Capital Management Inc. Raises Stock Position in RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ)

Key Points

• Victory Capital Management Inc. significantly increased its stake in RLJ Lodging Trust by 2,455.6%, owning 469,769 shares valued at approximately $3.7 million as of the latest SEC filing.
• RLJ Lodging Trust reported a quarterly earnings per share of $0.31, surpassing expectations and reflecting a 1.1% annual revenue increase.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share, translating to an annualized yield of 7.70%, despite a high payout ratio of 230.77%.

Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ - Free Report) by 2,455.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 469,769 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 451,387 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 0.31% of RLJ Lodging Trust worth $3,706,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Two Sigma Investments LP grew its position in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust by 103.5% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 488,403 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $4,987,000 after purchasing an additional 248,350 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $995,000. Man Group plc grew its position in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust by 300.6% in the fourth quarter. Man Group plc now owns 712,904 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $7,279,000 after purchasing an additional 534,938 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP acquired a new stake in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $9,714,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG grew its position in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust by 26.4% in the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 201,572 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $2,058,000 after purchasing an additional 42,143 shares during the last quarter. 92.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

RLJ Lodging Trust Trading Down 1.0%

NYSE:RLJ traded down $0.08 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $7.37. 194,502 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,090,016. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 2.57 and a quick ratio of 2.57. The firm has a market cap of $1.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.37 and a beta of 1.47. RLJ Lodging Trust has a 52-week low of $6.16 and a 52-week high of $10.84. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $7.44 and a 200 day simple moving average of $8.10.

RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.30 by $0.01. RLJ Lodging Trust had a net margin of 4.84% and a return on equity of 3.43%. The business had revenue of $328.12 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $328.08 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.33 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that RLJ Lodging Trust will post 1.37 EPS for the current year.

RLJ Lodging Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th were paid a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.15%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 30th. RLJ Lodging Trust's dividend payout ratio is presently 230.77%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on RLJ shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from $6.00 to $7.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from $10.00 to $7.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Oppenheimer reduced their price objective on shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from $12.00 to $11.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $9.40.

RLJ Lodging Trust 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.