DiamondRock Hospitality Company (NYSE:DRH) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

DiamondRock Hospitality Company (NYSE:DRH) has been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the eleven research firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $12.0250.

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on DRH shares. Barclays raised their target price on shares of DiamondRock Hospitality from $10.00 to $12.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Citigroup raised their price objective on DiamondRock Hospitality from $11.00 to $13.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Bank of America boosted their price objective on DiamondRock Hospitality from $12.50 to $13.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Stifel Nicolaus set a $12.25 target price on DiamondRock Hospitality in a research report on Thursday, June 4th. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH increased their target price on DiamondRock Hospitality from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 18th.

DiamondRock Hospitality Trading Down 0.5%

NYSE DRH opened at $12.90 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.60, a PEG ratio of 4.50 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a current ratio of 1.64. DiamondRock Hospitality has a one year low of $7.45 and a one year high of $13.05. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $11.72 and its 200 day moving average price is $10.44.

DiamondRock Hospitality Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were issued a $0.09 dividend. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 30th. DiamondRock Hospitality’s dividend payout ratio is currently 76.60%.

Insider Activity at DiamondRock Hospitality

In other news, Director Michael A. Hartmeier sold 20,000 shares of DiamondRock Hospitality stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.46, for a total transaction of $209,200.00. Following the sale, the director owned 95,354 shares in the company, valued at $997,402.84. This trade represents a 17.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Kathleen Merrill sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.88, for a total transaction of $237,600.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 84,335 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,001,899.80. The trade was a 19.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On DiamondRock Hospitality

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. UBS Group AG lifted its stake in shares of DiamondRock Hospitality by 49.9% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 2,627,787 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $23,545,000 after acquiring an additional 874,536 shares in the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new stake in DiamondRock Hospitality during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $846,000. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in DiamondRock Hospitality by 881.7% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 2,024,790 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $18,142,000 after purchasing an additional 1,818,527 shares during the last quarter. Strs Ohio increased its holdings in DiamondRock Hospitality by 300.0% during the 1st quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 145,600 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,361,000 after purchasing an additional 109,200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tudor Investment Corp ET AL acquired a new position in shares of DiamondRock Hospitality in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $450,000.

DiamondRock Hospitality Company Profile

DiamondRock Hospitality Company is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires, owns and manages a diversified portfolio of upscale, full-service hotels in urban gateway markets across the United States. Established in 2004 and headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, the company focuses on investing in high-quality lodging properties that cater to both business and leisure travelers. Its assets are positioned in key metropolitan areas, enabling DiamondRock to benefit from strong demand drivers such as corporate travel, group conventions and resort leisure stays.

The company’s portfolio includes full-service hotels offering a broad range of amenities, including guest rooms, on-site food and beverage outlets, meeting and event space, fitness centers and spa services.