Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc. (NYSE:APLE) Short Interest Up 6.8% in October

Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc. (NYSE:APLE - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 10,690,000 shares, a growth of 6.8% from the October 15th total of 10,010,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,960,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.5 days.

Apple Hospitality REIT Stock Down 0.5 %

APLE traded down $0.08 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $15.44. 1,226,142 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,051,387. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $15.07 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $14.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 0.04 and a quick ratio of 0.04. Apple Hospitality REIT has a fifty-two week low of $13.60 and a fifty-two week high of $17.90. The stock has a market cap of $3.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.16 and a beta of 1.11.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $0.45 by ($0.22). Apple Hospitality REIT had a return on equity of 6.17% and a net margin of 14.53%. The firm had revenue of $378.84 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $377.56 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.45 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Apple Hospitality REIT will post 1.6 EPS for the current year.

Apple Hospitality REIT Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a monthly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 31st were paid a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.22%. Apple Hospitality REIT's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 112.94%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on APLE. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Apple Hospitality REIT from $16.00 to $15.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Oppenheimer reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $18.00 price target (up from $17.00) on shares of Apple Hospitality REIT in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Apple Hospitality REIT from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $16.50.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Apple Hospitality REIT

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT by 3.5% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 35,555,550 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $582,400,000 after buying an additional 1,217,142 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Apple Hospitality REIT by 17.2% in the 2nd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,019,115 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $87,518,000 after purchasing an additional 881,217 shares during the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. boosted its position in Apple Hospitality REIT by 400.8% during the second quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 638,625 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $9,286,000 after purchasing an additional 511,100 shares during the period. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. grew its holdings in Apple Hospitality REIT by 911.1% during the second quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 388,414 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $5,648,000 after purchasing an additional 350,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V. raised its position in shares of Apple Hospitality REIT by 3,768.4% in the second quarter. Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V. now owns 348,156 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $5,062,000 after purchasing an additional 339,156 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.66% of the company's stock.

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.