RLJ Lodging Trust (RLJ): Marketing Mix Analysis [Dec-2025 Updated]

You're looking at a hotel REIT navigating a tricky spot, and honestly, understanding the four P's for RLJ Lodging Trust right now is key to seeing where the value is hidden. As of late 2025, RLJ Lodging Trust is leaning hard on its portfolio of about 21,000 rooms under top flags like Marriott and Hilton, strategically placed in tough-to-enter urban spots where Place is king, even as Q3 Comparable RevPAR dipped to $138.51 due to ongoing renovations. Their Promotion is smart, relying on those big brand systems, but the Price story is one of near-term pressure-ADR fell 2.1% in Q3-even as they push internal growth initiatives. Let's break down exactly how this mix of premium Product, urban Place, brand-dependent Promotion, and cautious Price action sets up RLJ Lodging Trust for the rest of the year and beyond.

RLJ Lodging Trust (RLJ) - Marketing Mix: Product

You're looking at the physical assets that drive RLJ Lodging Trust's revenue stream, which is defintely a focused collection of real estate. The core product is the guest room experience within a specific hotel category.

The current product offering centers on a portfolio of 94 premium-branded, rooms-oriented hotels across 23 states and the District of Columbia, providing approximately 21,000 rooms as of September 30, 2025. You also hold an ownership interest in one unconsolidated hotel containing 171 rooms.

RLJ Lodging Trust's strategy is to concentrate on the focused-service and compact full-service hotel segments. This product focus is intentional, aiming for high operating margins and efficiency, which is key to their lean operating model.

The quality of the product is intrinsically linked to the brand flags under which the properties operate. This association helps drive occupancy and rate through established loyalty programs and brand standards.

• Portfolio operates under major global flags: Marriott, Hilton, and Hyatt.
• Specific brands include Courtyard by Marriott, Residence Inn by Marriott, AC Hotels, Moxy Hotels, Hilton Garden Inn, Embassy Suites, Hyatt Place, and Hyatt Centric.
• Strategic brand conversions are a key part of the product enhancement plan.
• The Wyndham Boston Beacon Hill hotel is slated to join Hilton's Tapestry Collection, with renovations expected to start late next year.
• The 4 most recently completed conversions achieved 6% growth in Comparable Revenue Per Available Room (RevPAR) during the third quarter of 2025.

To maintain and enhance the value of this product portfolio, RLJ Lodging Trust commits significant capital to ongoing improvements. This investment is crucial for keeping properties competitive and meeting brand standards.

You see this capital deployment as necessary to unlock embedded value, especially as three major transformative renovations were substantially completed year-to-date 2025. This investment in the physical product is designed to support the company's goal of generating strong operating margins.

RLJ Lodging Trust (RLJ) - Marketing Mix: Place

The Place strategy for RLJ Lodging Trust centers on owning a portfolio of premium-branded, rooms-oriented, high-margin, focused-service, and compact full-service hotels situated in prime demand locations. This distribution strategy prioritizes accessibility to key demand generators over broad geographic dispersion.

RLJ Lodging Trust owns a portfolio consisting of 94 hotels with approximately 21,000 rooms, plus an ownership interest in one unconsolidated hotel with 171 rooms. The properties are concentrated in major urban areas and dense suburban markets, which the company believes offer high barriers to entry due to high construction costs and real estate values. The portfolio is described as urban-centric, with properties strategically located to capture diverse traveler segments.

The geographical footprint is diverse, spanning 23 states and the District of Columbia. The company's focus on urban concentration is evident in the performance metrics from the third quarter of 2025, where urban hotels outperformed the broader portfolio by 50 basis points in RevPAR.

The properties benefit from multiple demand generators, including business, leisure, and group travelers. For instance, urban leisure demand saw a 3.2% increase in Q3 2025.

The strength of this distribution strategy in key urban markets is reflected in the third quarter 2025 RevPAR growth figures:

This performance underscores the value of placing assets in markets with high underlying demand potential.

The distribution strategy emphasizes high-barrier-to-entry locations, which include markets such as:

• San Francisco CBD
• Atlanta
• New York City
• Boston (mentioned in context of new projects)

The company also reported that out-of-room revenues, which contribute to the overall accessibility and service offering, grew by 1.3% in Q3 2025.

RLJ Lodging Trust (RLJ) - Marketing Mix: Promotion

Primary promotion for RLJ Lodging Trust centers on the inherent marketing power and established reach of its major brand partners. This strategy directly taps into the worldwide reservation systems and the established brand equity associated with Marriott, Hilton, and Hyatt properties within the portfolio.

Internal growth promotion is strongly tied to Return on Investment ("ROI") initiatives aimed at increasing non-rooms revenue. These efforts proved effective in the third quarter of 2025, where out-of-room revenues saw a growth of 1.3% over the prior year, even as overall occupancy declined by 3.1%.

Strategic asset repositioning through renovations and conversions serves as a direct marketing tool to enhance property appeal and drive performance. For example, the 4 most recently completed conversions achieved 6% growth during the third quarter of 2025. One specific conversion, the newest one in Nashville, achieved high single-digit RevPAR growth. Furthermore, the Renaissance Pittsburgh Hotel began physical renovations during the quarter to convert to Marriott's Autograph Collection.

Investor-focused promotion is executed through capital return activities. Year-to-date 2025, RLJ Lodging Trust repurchased 3.3 million common shares for approximately $28.6 million. As of November 5, 2025, the remaining capacity under the 2025 share repurchase program stood at $245.7 million.

The reliance on premium brand affiliations inherently means utilizing the franchisors' extensive loyalty programs to help drive occupancy and revenue across the portfolio.

Here are key promotional and capital return metrics from the third quarter of 2025:

The promotional activities and their financial outcomes in the third quarter of 2025 included:

• Total Revenues reported at $330.0 million.
• Comparable Hotel EBITDA of $80.8 million.
• Adjusted EBITDA of $72.6 million.
• Adjusted FFO per diluted common share and unit of $0.27.
• Three transformative renovations were completed during the quarter.

Finance: draft 13-week cash view by Friday.

RLJ Lodging Trust (RLJ) - Marketing Mix: Price

You're looking at how RLJ Lodging Trust sets the price for its rooms and services as of late 2025. This isn't just about the sticker price; it's about how they adjust rates to keep the business attractive while managing external pressures like renovation costs and softer demand.

The pricing environment in the third quarter of 2025 showed clear headwinds. For the third quarter, the Comparable Average Daily Rate (ADR) settled at $189.74, which represents a 2.1% decline from the prior year. This rate pressure contributed to the overall portfolio Comparable RevPAR (Revenue Per Available Room) landing at $138.51, a year-over-year decrease of 5.1%, which management attributed in part to renovation displacement. Still, the focus remains on rate management; for instance, corporate rates saw a healthy 2.4% revenue growth, indicating success in driving higher-rated business travel segments. Also, group ADR showed pricing strength, achieving 2% growth for the quarter, even as group revenues were impacted by calendar shifts.

The full-year 2025 outlook reflects this cautious stance on pricing power versus occupancy challenges. RLJ Lodging Trust updated its full-year projection for Comparable RevPAR growth to range between -1.9% and -2.6%. Consequently, the projection for Adjusted FFO per diluted share was also adjusted, now expected to be between $1.31 and $1.37, which incorporates shares repurchased up to that point. This strategy of driving rate is key to mitigating the impact of occupancy declines, which were 3.1% lower year-over-year in Q3 2025.

Here are the key pricing and rate metrics from the third quarter of 2025:

The company's approach to pricing involves several levers to maintain financial performance:

• Driving rate to offset occupancy softness.
• Achieving 1.3% growth in out-of-room revenues.
• Corporate rates increased by a healthy 3%.
• Group ADR saw pricing strength with 2% growth.
• Recent conversions achieved 6% RevPAR growth.
• Quarterly common share dividend maintained at $0.15 per share.

For the full year 2025, capital expenditures related to renovations are budgeted between $80 million to $100 million, which is a cost factor influencing the need for effective pricing strategies. Finance: draft 13-week cash view by Friday.