DiamondRock Hospitality (NYSE:DRH) Short Interest Update

DiamondRock Hospitality (NYSE:DRH - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest during the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 15,800,000 shares, a decrease of 21.4% from the December 31st total of 20,100,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,120,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 7.5 days. Approximately 7.8% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Evercore ISI downgraded shares of DiamondRock Hospitality from an "outperform" rating to an "inline" rating and set a $10.50 price objective for the company. in a research report on Friday, November 15th. StockNews.com raised shares of DiamondRock Hospitality from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Stifel Nicolaus cut shares of DiamondRock Hospitality from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $10.75 to $10.25 in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of DiamondRock Hospitality from $10.00 to $10.50 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, DiamondRock Hospitality has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $10.25.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in shares of DiamondRock Hospitality by 11.8% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 98,176 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $830,000 after purchasing an additional 10,336 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in DiamondRock Hospitality by 4.0% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,102,363 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $26,214,000 after buying an additional 120,228 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. grew its position in shares of DiamondRock Hospitality by 9.7% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 335,565 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $2,835,000 after acquiring an additional 29,646 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of DiamondRock Hospitality during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $15,118,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in shares of DiamondRock Hospitality by 3.4% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 117,290 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $991,000 after acquiring an additional 3,852 shares in the last quarter.

DiamondRock Hospitality Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of DRH stock traded down $0.05 on Friday, hitting $8.79. 1,729,970 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,454,765. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 1.73 and a current ratio of 1.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.82 billion, a PE ratio of 31.39, a PEG ratio of 4.90 and a beta of 1.59. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $9.17 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $8.83. DiamondRock Hospitality has a twelve month low of $7.74 and a twelve month high of $10.00.

DiamondRock Hospitality Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were paid a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 14.56%. This is a positive change from DiamondRock Hospitality's previous quarterly dividend of $0.03. DiamondRock Hospitality's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 42.86%.

About DiamondRock Hospitality

DiamondRock Hospitality Company is a self-advised real estate investment trust (REIT) that is an owner of a leading portfolio of geographically diversified hotels concentrated in leisure destinations and top gateway markets. The Company currently owns 36 premium quality hotels with over 9,700 rooms. The Company has strategically positioned its portfolio to be operated both under leading global brand families as well as independent boutique hotels in the lifestyle segment.