Investors Who Bought RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) Shares A Year Ago Are Now Up 55%

It hasn't been the best quarter for RLJ Lodging Trust (NYSE:RLJ) shareholders, since the share price has fallen 10% in that time. But that doesn't change the reality that over twelve months the stock has done really well. After all, the share price is up a market-beating 55% in that time.

See our latest analysis for RLJ Lodging Trust

There is no denying that markets are sometimes efficient, but prices do not always reflect underlying business performance. One imperfect but simple way to consider how the market perception of a company has shifted is to compare the change in the earnings per share (EPS) with the share price movement.

During the last year RLJ Lodging Trust saw its earnings per share (EPS) drop below zero. While some may see this as temporary, we're a skeptical bunch, and so we're a little surprised to see the share price go up. We might get a clue to explain the share price move by looking to other metrics.

We are skeptical of the suggestion that the 0.3% dividend yield would entice buyers to the stock. Unfortunately RLJ Lodging Trust's fell 77% over twelve months. So using a snapshot of key business metrics doesn't give us a good picture of why the market is bidding up the stock.

You can see below how earnings and revenue have changed over time (discover the exact values by clicking on the image).

This free interactive report on RLJ Lodging Trust's balance sheet strength is a great place to start, if you want to investigate the stock further.

A Different Perspective

It's nice to see that RLJ Lodging Trust shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 56% over the last year. That's including the dividend. There's no doubt those recent returns are much better than the TSR loss of 4% per year over five years. The long term loss makes us cautious, but the short term TSR gain certainly hints at a brighter future. While it is well worth considering the different impacts that market conditions can have on the share price, there are other factors that are even more important. Even so, be aware that RLJ Lodging Trust is showing 1 warning sign in our investment analysis , you should know about...

But note: RLJ Lodging Trust may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with past earnings growth (and further growth forecast).

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on US exchanges.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.
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