RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) Receives Average Rating of "Hold" from Analysts

Key Points

• Analyst consensus: "Hold" — Nine analysts give RLJ an overall "Hold" rating (3 sell, 4 hold, 1 buy, 1 strong buy) with a one-year average price target of $8.00.
• RLJ beat Q4 estimates with $0.32 EPS (vs. $0.28 est.) and $328.6M revenue (vs. $318.0M est.), set FY2026 guidance of 1.210–1.410 EPS (analysts model ~1.37 EPS).
• High institutional ownership (92.35%) with several funds increasing positions recently, notably Donald Smith & CO. raising its stake to 13.14M shares (~$97.9M).

Shares of RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ - Get Free Report) have earned a consensus recommendation of "Hold" from the nine analysts that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have assigned a hold recommendation, one has assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $8.00.

RLJ has been the subject of a number of research reports. Zacks Research upgraded RLJ Lodging Trust from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH initiated coverage on RLJ Lodging Trust in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $8.50 price objective for the company. Barclays started coverage on RLJ Lodging Trust in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. They set an "underweight" rating and a $6.00 price objective for the company. Truist Financial reduced their price target on RLJ Lodging Trust from $8.00 to $7.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d)" rating on shares of RLJ Lodging Trust in a report on Monday, December 29th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On RLJ Lodging Trust

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in RLJ. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust by 23.1% during the 4th quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. now owns 13,140,744 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $97,899,000 after buying an additional 2,463,189 shares during the last quarter. Centersquare Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust during the 4th quarter valued at about $13,254,000. Aegis Financial Corp acquired a new stake in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust during the 4th quarter valued at about $9,475,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust by 286.2% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,618,413 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $11,783,000 after buying an additional 1,199,318 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust by 179.5% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,434,974 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $10,447,000 after acquiring an additional 921,548 shares in the last quarter. 92.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

RLJ Lodging Trust Trading Up 2.3%

Shares of NYSE RLJ opened at $8.03 on Tuesday. RLJ Lodging Trust has a one year low of $6.54 and a one year high of $8.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.22 billion, a PE ratio of 401.65 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a current ratio of 2.96, a quick ratio of 2.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $7.83 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $7.53.

RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.28 by $0.04. RLJ Lodging Trust had a return on equity of 1.54% and a net margin of 2.11%.The firm had revenue of $328.59 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $317.95 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.33 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. RLJ Lodging Trust has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.210-1.410 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that RLJ Lodging Trust will post 1.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

RLJ Lodging Trust Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.5%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. RLJ Lodging Trust's payout ratio is currently 3,000.00%.

About RLJ Lodging Trust

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.

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