Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV Has $1.18 Million Stake in Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc. (NYSE:APLE)

Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV increased its stake in Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc. (NYSE:APLE) by 14.3% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 76,848 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,601 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV’s holdings in Apple Hospitality REIT were worth $1,180,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in APLE. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT by 128.1% during the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 3,118 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 1,751 shares during the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. bought a new stake in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $51,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT by 80.9% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,905 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $75,000 after acquiring an additional 2,193 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Apple Hospitality REIT during the fourth quarter worth $92,000. Institutional investors own 89.66% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Apple Hospitality REIT from $17.00 to $16.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Bank of America upgraded Apple Hospitality REIT from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $16.00 to $17.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Apple Hospitality REIT presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $16.80.

Apple Hospitality REIT Price Performance

NYSE:APLE opened at $11.76 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 0.04 and a current ratio of 0.04. The company has a 50-day moving average of $12.41 and a 200-day moving average of $14.36. Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc. has a 52 week low of $10.44 and a 52 week high of $16.50. The company has a market capitalization of $2.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.84 and a beta of 1.07.

Apple Hospitality REIT (NYSE:APLE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The real estate investment trust reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.01. Apple Hospitality REIT had a net margin of 14.53% and a return on equity of 6.17%. The firm had revenue of $327.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $332.86 million. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc. will post 1.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Hospitality REIT Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be given a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. Apple Hospitality REIT’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 121.52%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apple Hospitality REIT

In other news, Chairman Glade M. Knight bought 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $11.43 per share, for a total transaction of $114,300.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 700,344 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,004,931.92. This trade represents a 1.45 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Over the last three months, insiders purchased 12,000 shares of company stock valued at $137,120. 7.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Apple Hospitality REIT Company Profile

Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc (NYSE: APLE) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns one of the largest and most diverse portfolios of upscale, rooms-focused hotels in the United States. Apple Hospitality's portfolio consists of 223 hotels with more than 29,400 guest rooms located in 87 markets throughout 37 states as well as one property leased to third parties.