Apple Hospitality REIT (NYSE:APLE) Upgraded by StockNews.com to “Hold” Rating

Apple Hospitality REIT (NYSE:APLE) was upgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Friday.

Several other research firms have also recently commented on APLE. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $18.00 target price (up from $17.00) on shares of Apple Hospitality REIT in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Apple Hospitality REIT from $16.00 to $15.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 13th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Apple Hospitality REIT has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $16.50.

Apple Hospitality REIT Price Performance

Apple Hospitality REIT stock opened at $15.75 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 0.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $15.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $14.67. Apple Hospitality REIT has a 12-month low of $13.60 and a 12-month high of $17.90. The stock has a market cap of $3.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.52 and a beta of 1.11.

Apple Hospitality REIT (NYSE:APLE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by ($0.22). The firm had revenue of $378.84 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $377.56 million. Apple Hospitality REIT had a return on equity of 6.17% and a net margin of 14.53%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.45 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Apple Hospitality REIT will post 1.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Apple Hospitality REIT

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT by 3.5% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 35,555,550 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $582,400,000 after purchasing an additional 1,217,142 shares during the last quarter. Masterton Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT in the second quarter valued at about $3,378,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT by 4.8% in the second 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 acquiring an additional 154,159 shares in the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its stake in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT by 14.9% during the third quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 818,601 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $12,156,000 after acquiring an additional 105,993 shares during the period. Finally, Aurora Investment Counsel raised its holdings in Apple Hospitality REIT by 182.9% during the second quarter. Aurora Investment Counsel now owns 75,802 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,102,000 after purchasing an additional 49,003 shares in the last quarter. 89.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.