Apple Hospitality REIT (NYSE:APLE) Sets New 12-Month Low – Time to Sell?

Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc. (NYSE:APLE)’s share price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $13.49 and last traded at $13.54, with a volume of 524873 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $13.70.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on APLE shares. StockNews.com upgraded Apple Hospitality REIT from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Apple Hospitality REIT from $17.00 to $16.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Bank of America raised shares of Apple Hospitality REIT from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $16.00 to $17.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of Apple Hospitality REIT in a research note on Monday, December 9th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $18.00 price target on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Apple Hospitality REIT presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $16.80.

Apple Hospitality REIT Trading Down 3.7 %

The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $14.94 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $15.12. 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 market cap of $3.15 billion, a PE ratio of 15.45 and a beta of 1.12.

Apple Hospitality REIT (NYSE:APLE) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 24th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $333.04 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $330.11 million. Apple Hospitality REIT had a return on equity of 6.17% and a net margin of 14.53%. On average, analysts forecast that Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc. will post 1.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Hospitality REIT Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.31%. Apple Hospitality REIT’s dividend payout ratio is presently 109.09%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Apple Hospitality REIT

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,590,568 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $70,465,000 after purchasing an additional 133,505 shares during the last quarter. Centiva Capital LP acquired a new position in Apple Hospitality REIT in the third quarter valued at $1,067,000. Barclays PLC grew its position in Apple Hospitality REIT by 118.8% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 422,361 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $6,273,000 after acquiring an additional 229,293 shares during the period. Foundry Partners LLC grew its position in Apple Hospitality REIT by 29.6% during the third quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 474,672 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $7,049,000 after acquiring an additional 108,523 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV increased its stake in Apple Hospitality REIT by 37.8% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 9,257 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $142,000 after acquiring an additional 2,541 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.