Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc. (NYSE:APLE) Shares Sold by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. lowered its position in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc. (NYSE:APLE - Free Report) by 17.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,056,252 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 220,280 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.44% of Apple Hospitality REIT worth $15,685,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in APLE. EdgeRock Capital LLC acquired a new position in Apple Hospitality REIT during the second quarter valued at $26,000. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT by 127.5% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,302 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 1,290 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT by 40.4% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,712 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 780 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its holdings in Apple Hospitality REIT by 115.6% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 4,314 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $71,000 after acquiring an additional 2,313 shares during the period. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC raised its position in Apple Hospitality REIT by 4,406.5% during the second quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 5,543 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $81,000 after acquiring an additional 5,420 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.66% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on APLE shares. StockNews.com lowered Apple Hospitality REIT from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday. Oppenheimer restated an "outperform" rating and set a $18.00 price target (up previously from $17.00) on shares of Apple Hospitality REIT in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Apple Hospitality REIT from $16.00 to $15.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Apple Hospitality REIT has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $16.50.

Apple Hospitality REIT Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:APLE traded down $0.09 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $15.50. 1,153,587 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,058,645. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $15.01 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $14.66. Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc. has a 1 year low of $13.60 and a 1 year high of $17.90. The company has a market cap of $3.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.24 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 0.04 and a current ratio of 0.04.

Apple Hospitality REIT (NYSE:APLE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.23 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.45 by ($0.22). The business had revenue of $378.84 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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 period in the prior year, the business posted $0.45 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc. will post 1.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Hospitality REIT Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 31st were issued a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.19%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 31st. Apple Hospitality REIT's dividend payout ratio is currently 112.94%.

About Apple Hospitality REIT

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.