Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc. (APLE) to Issue Monthly Dividend of $0.08 on March 17th

Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc. (NYSE:APLE) announced a monthly dividend on Tuesday, February 18th,Wall Street Journal reports. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of 0.08 per share by the real estate investment trust on Monday, March 17th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.25%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th.

Apple Hospitality REIT has increased its dividend payment by an average of 188.5% annually over the last three years. Apple Hospitality REIT has a payout ratio of 110.3% meaning the company cannot currently cover its dividend with earnings alone and is relying on its balance sheet to cover its dividend payments. Research analysts expect Apple Hospitality REIT to earn $1.62 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.96 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 59.3%.

Apple Hospitality REIT Trading Down 0.2 %

NYSE:APLE opened at $15.35 on Thursday. 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 capitalization of $3.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.06 and a beta of 1.13. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $15.33 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $15.10. Apple Hospitality REIT has a 12 month low of $13.60 and a 12 month high of $16.99.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on APLE shares. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of Apple Hospitality REIT in a report on Monday, December 9th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $18.00 price target for the company. Bank of America upgraded shares of Apple Hospitality REIT from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $16.00 to $17.00 in a report on Monday, January 27th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Apple Hospitality REIT from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $18.00 price objective (up from $17.00) on shares of Apple Hospitality REIT in a report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Apple Hospitality REIT from $17.00 to $16.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $16.80.

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.