RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) Sets New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday. The company traded as high as $12.91 and last traded at $12.8940, with a volume of 36,219 shares. The stock had previously closed at $12.61.

Analyst Ratings Changes

RLJ has been the subject of several recent research reports. Bank of America upped their price target on RLJ Lodging Trust from $9.25 to $10.50 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. Weiss Ratings raised RLJ Lodging Trust from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Friday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on RLJ Lodging Trust from $9.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Raymond James Financial lowered shares of RLJ Lodging Trust from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, September 28th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on RLJ Lodging Trust from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $11.81.

RLJ Lodging Trust Trading Up 2.3%

The firm has a market cap of $1.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.76, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.14. The business has a 50-day moving average of $11.37 and a 200-day moving average of $9.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 5.71 and a quick ratio of 5.71.

RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.37. RLJ Lodging Trust had a return on equity of 1.52% and a net margin of 2.00%. The business had revenue of $382.99 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $370.49 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.48 earnings per share. RLJ Lodging Trust’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. RLJ Lodging Trust has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.370-1.500 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that RLJ Lodging Trust will post 1.34 EPS for the current year.

RLJ Lodging Trust Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th were issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.6%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 30th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On RLJ Lodging Trust

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of RLJ. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust during the 3rd quarter worth about $273,000. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC bought a new position in RLJ Lodging Trust in the 3rd quarter valued at about $141,000. State of Wyoming lifted its position in RLJ Lodging Trust by 51.9% during the third quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 87,545 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $967,000 after acquiring an additional 29,898 shares during the last quarter. Choreo LLC lifted its position in RLJ Lodging Trust by 3.1% during the third quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 46,203 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $511,000 after acquiring an additional 1,387 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Signaturefd LLC boosted its holdings in shares of RLJ Lodging Trust by 234.9% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 3,614 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 2,535 shares during the period. 92.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About RLJ Lodging Trust

RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) is a self-advised real estate investment trust that owns a portfolio of premium-branded, focused-service and compact full-service hotels. The company’s properties primarily operate under brands affiliated with Marriott International, Hilton Worldwide Holdings and Hyatt Hotels, among other major lodging companies.

RLJ’s hotels are generally located in urban and densely populated areas, including major business and leisure markets across the United States. The properties provide guest accommodations and related hospitality services, while independent hotel management companies typically oversee day-to-day operations.

The company was formed in 2011 and is named after Robert L.