Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc. (NYSE:APLE) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc. (NYSE:APLE) saw a large increase in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 8,450,000 shares, an increase of 12.7% from the December 15th total of 7,500,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,760,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.8 days. Approximately 3.8% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

APLE has been the topic of several analyst reports. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $18.00 target price (up from $17.00) on shares of Apple Hospitality REIT in a report on Friday, November 8th. StockNews.com raised shares of Apple Hospitality REIT from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of Apple Hospitality REIT in a report on Monday, December 9th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $18.00 target price for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Apple Hospitality REIT has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $16.50.

Institutional Trading of Apple Hospitality REIT

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of APLE. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Apple Hospitality REIT by 11.9% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,737,959 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $100,059,000 after purchasing an additional 718,844 shares during the last quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT by 911.1% in the 2nd quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 388,414 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $5,648,000 after purchasing an additional 350,000 shares during the period. Holocene Advisors LP purchased a new position in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT in the third quarter worth approximately $4,285,000. Masterton Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT in the second quarter worth approximately $3,378,000. Finally, 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 buying an additional 229,293 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.66% of the company’s stock.

Apple Hospitality REIT Trading Down 0.3 %

Apple Hospitality REIT stock opened at $15.05 on Monday. Apple Hospitality REIT has a one year low of $13.60 and a one year high of $16.99. The business’s fifty day moving average is $15.60 and its 200 day moving average is $14.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 0.04 and a quick ratio of 0.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.61 billion, a PE ratio of 17.70 and a beta of 1.13.

Apple Hospitality REIT (NYSE:APLE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.23 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by ($0.22). The company had revenue of $378.84 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 firm earned $0.45 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Apple Hospitality REIT will post 1.6 EPS for the current year.

Apple Hospitality REIT Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a monthly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were paid a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.38%. Apple Hospitality REIT’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 112.94%.

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.