Insider Selling: Ryman Hospitality Properties, Inc. (NYSE:RHP) Director Sells $144,640.62 in Stock

Ryman Hospitality Properties, Inc. (NYSE:RHP) Director Fazal F. Merchant sold 1,269 shares of Ryman Hospitality Properties stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.98, for a total value of $144,640.62. Following the transaction, the director now owns 4,825 shares in the company, valued at approximately $549,953.50. This represents a 20.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Ryman Hospitality Properties Stock Down 0.7 %

NYSE RHP opened at $111.41 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $108.40 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $104.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.67 billion, a PE ratio of 19.79, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.65. Ryman Hospitality Properties, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $93.76 and a fifty-two week high of $122.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.07, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 1.73.

Ryman Hospitality Properties (NYSE:RHP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.94 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.83 by ($0.89). Ryman Hospitality Properties had a return on equity of 61.94% and a net margin of 14.84%. The business had revenue of $549.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $545.93 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.73 earnings per share. Ryman Hospitality Properties’s quarterly revenue was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Ryman Hospitality Properties, Inc. will post 8.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ryman Hospitality Properties Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a dividend of $1.15 per share. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.13%. This is a boost from Ryman Hospitality Properties’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. Ryman Hospitality Properties’s dividend payout ratio is currently 78.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on RHP shares. StockNews.com raised Ryman Hospitality Properties from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Ryman Hospitality Properties in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $130.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Ryman Hospitality Properties from $127.00 to $115.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Ryman Hospitality Properties from $104.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Ryman Hospitality Properties currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $125.17.

Institutional Trading of Ryman Hospitality Properties

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in RHP. Quadrature Capital Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Ryman Hospitality Properties by 94.3% during the first quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd now owns 20,639 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,389,000 after buying an additional 10,015 shares in the last quarter. SageView Advisory Group LLC grew its position in Ryman Hospitality Properties by 203.2% during the 1st quarter. SageView Advisory Group LLC now owns 11,523 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,332,000 after acquiring an additional 7,723 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Ryman Hospitality Properties by 378.7% in the 2nd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 21,329 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,130,000 after purchasing an additional 16,873 shares in the last quarter. Centersquare Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Ryman Hospitality Properties in the first quarter valued at about $1,833,000. Finally, PGGM Investments acquired a new stake in shares of Ryman Hospitality Properties during the second quarter valued at about $7,512,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.48% of the company’s stock.

About Ryman Hospitality Properties

Ryman Hospitality Properties, Inc (NYSE: RHP) is a leading lodging and hospitality real estate investment trust that specializes in upscale convention center resorts and entertainment experiences. The Company's holdings include Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center; Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center; Gaylord Texan Resort & Convention Center; Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center; and Gaylord Rockies Resort & Convention Center, five of the top seven largest non-gaming convention center hotels in the United States based on total indoor meeting space.