QRG Capital Management Inc. Purchases 35,950 Shares of Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc. $APLE

QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc. (NYSE:APLE) by 31.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 149,996 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 35,950 shares during the quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Apple Hospitality REIT were worth $1,726,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,962,856 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $154,627,000 after buying an additional 68,794 shares during the period. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 7,107,802 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $84,227,000 after buying an additional 127,327 shares during the period. UBS Group AG raised its holdings in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT by 60.8% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 4,721,481 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $55,950,000 after acquiring an additional 1,786,018 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,714,872 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $55,871,000 after acquiring an additional 125,759 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Centerbridge Partners L.P. lifted its stake in Apple Hospitality REIT by 88.2% in the fourth quarter. Centerbridge Partners L.P. now owns 4,229,785 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $50,123,000 after acquiring an additional 1,982,000 shares during the period. 89.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Apple Hospitality REIT Price Performance

Shares of APLE stock opened at $16.34 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $15.24 and its 200 day moving average is $13.24. Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc. has a 1-year low of $10.85 and a 1-year high of $17.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The company has a market cap of $3.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.38, a PEG ratio of 8.10 and a beta of 0.87.

Apple Hospitality REIT (NYSE:APLE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.12 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.11 by $0.01. Apple Hospitality REIT had a net margin of 12.08% and a return on equity of 5.43%. The business had revenue of $337.74 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $327.81 million. Research analysts predict that Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc. will post 1.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Apple Hospitality REIT Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be given a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.9%. Apple Hospitality REIT’s dividend payout ratio is presently 131.51%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on APLE shares. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Apple Hospitality REIT from $13.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upped their price target on shares of Apple Hospitality REIT from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Apple Hospitality REIT from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Apple Hospitality REIT from $14.00 to $16.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, June 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on shares of Apple Hospitality REIT in a report on Monday, June 1st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $15.00 price objective on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $14.94.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman Glade M. Knight bought 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 11th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $13.96 per share, for a total transaction of $69,800.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chairman directly owned 747,191 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,430,786.36. The trade was a 0.67% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 6.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Apple Hospitality REIT

Apple Hospitality REIT (NYSE: APLE) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that focuses on acquiring, owning and operating high-quality, upscale, select-service hotels. The company’s portfolio primarily consists of properties operated under premium franchise agreements with leading lodging brands such as Marriott, Hilton and Hyatt. Apple Hospitality REIT is self-managed and internally advised, overseeing property management, revenue optimization and asset-level operations through its in-house team of hospitality professionals.

The company’s holdings encompass over 200 hotels featuring more than 30,000 guest rooms across a diverse array of markets in the United States.