Short Interest in Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc. (NYSE:APLE) Declines By 20.0%

Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc. (NYSE:APLE - Get Free Report) saw a significant drop in short interest during the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 6,860,000 shares, a drop of 20.0% from the February 28th total of 8,580,000 shares. Approximately 3.1% of the company's stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,190,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.1 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

APLE has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on 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. Bank of America upgraded shares of Apple Hospitality REIT from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $16.00 to $17.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of 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. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Apple Hospitality REIT presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $16.80.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Apple Hospitality REIT

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in APLE. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Apple Hospitality REIT by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 23,850 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $366,000 after acquiring an additional 755 shares during the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT by 20.1% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 6,740 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $104,000 after purchasing an additional 1,128 shares during the last quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC lifted its position in Apple Hospitality REIT by 8.5% during the fourth quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC now owns 14,502 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $223,000 after buying an additional 1,137 shares in the last quarter. Keybank National Association OH boosted its stake in Apple Hospitality REIT by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 40,163 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $617,000 after buying an additional 1,218 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. grew its holdings in Apple Hospitality REIT by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. now owns 27,079 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $416,000 after buying an additional 1,272 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.66% of the company's stock.

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Apple Hospitality REIT Stock Performance

NYSE APLE remained flat at $12.92 during trading hours on Wednesday. The company had a trading volume of 4,532,150 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,081,744. Apple Hospitality REIT has a 52-week low of $12.65 and a 52-week high of $16.50. The company's 50-day moving average is $14.48 and its two-hundred day moving average is $15.04. 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 stock has a market cap of $3.10 billion, a PE ratio of 15.20 and a beta of 1.12.

Apple Hospitality REIT (NYSE:APLE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 24th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.01. Apple Hospitality REIT had a return on equity of 6.17% and a net margin of 14.53%. The business had revenue of $333.04 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $330.11 million. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Apple Hospitality REIT will post 1.6 EPS for the current year.

Apple Hospitality REIT Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Apple Hospitality REIT's dividend payout ratio is presently 109.09%.

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.