Apple Hospitality REIT (NYSE:APLE) Stock Rating Upgraded by Bank of America

Bank of America upgraded shares of Apple Hospitality REIT (NYSE:APLE) from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a report published on Monday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm currently has $17.00 price objective on the real estate investment trust’s stock, up from their prior price objective of $16.00.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Apple Hospitality REIT from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $18.00 price objective (up from $17.00) on shares of Apple Hospitality REIT in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of Apple Hospitality REIT in a research report on Monday, December 9th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $18.00 target price on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Apple Hospitality REIT presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $16.60.

Apple Hospitality REIT Price Performance

Apple Hospitality REIT stock opened at $15.60 on Monday. Apple Hospitality REIT has a 52 week low of $13.60 and a 52 week high of $16.99. The firm has a market cap of $3.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.35 and a beta of 1.13. 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 business’s fifty day moving average is $15.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $15.04.

Apple Hospitality REIT (NYSE:APLE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.23 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.45 by ($0.22). Apple Hospitality REIT had a net margin of 14.53% and a return on equity of 6.17%. The company had revenue of $378.84 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $377.56 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.45 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Apple Hospitality REIT will post 1.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Hospitality REIT Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.16%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 31st. Apple Hospitality REIT’s dividend payout ratio is currently 112.94%.

Institutional Trading of Apple Hospitality REIT

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT by 4.3% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,457,063 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $66,187,000 after acquiring an additional 182,917 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in Apple Hospitality REIT by 4.8% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,375,016 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $49,072,000 after buying an additional 154,159 shares during the last quarter. Centiva Capital LP bought a new stake in Apple Hospitality REIT in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,067,000. Barclays PLC grew its stake in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT by 118.8% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 422,361 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $6,273,000 after acquiring an additional 229,293 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its holdings in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT by 14.9% in the third quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 818,601 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $12,156,000 after purchasing an additional 105,993 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.66% of the company’s stock.

About Apple Hospitality REIT

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.