Host Hotels & Resorts (NASDAQ:HST) Sets New 12-Month High – What’s Next?

Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (NASDAQ:HST)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday. The company traded as high as $26.05 and last traded at $25.8980, with a volume of 351,793 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $25.78.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on HST shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded Host Hotels & Resorts from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Barclays increased their price target on Host Hotels & Resorts from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 13th. Evercore set a $26.00 price target on Host Hotels & Resorts in a research report on Monday, October 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $25.14.

Host Hotels & Resorts Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 2.96, a current ratio of 2.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The stock has a market cap of $17.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 1.09. The company’s 50-day moving average is $23.06 and its 200-day moving average is $21.98.

Host Hotels & Resorts (NASDAQ:HST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.63 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.62 billion. Host Hotels & Resorts had a net margin of 16.51% and a return on equity of 15.53%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.58 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. will post 2.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Host Hotels & Resorts Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 30th were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 30th. Host Hotels & Resorts’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 53.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Nathan Tyrrell sold 63,882 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.13, for a total value of $1,477,590.66. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 618,207 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,299,127.91. The trade was a 9.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Host Hotels & Resorts

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Candriam S.C.A. increased its position in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts by 81.8% during the 3rd quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 573,836 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,895,000 after purchasing an additional 258,133 shares in the last quarter. Uhlmann Price Securities LLC acquired a new position in Host Hotels & Resorts in the third quarter valued at about $238,000. 180 Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Host Hotels & Resorts during the third quarter worth about $323,000. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Host Hotels & Resorts during the third quarter worth about $275,000. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts by 28.1% during the third quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 23,674 shares of the company’s stock worth $530,000 after buying an additional 5,196 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.52% of the company’s stock.

About Host Hotels & Resorts

Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc is a self-managed and self-administered real estate investment trust that owns and operates a portfolio of luxury and upper-upscale hotels. The company’s properties are generally located in high-demand business and leisure destinations and include full-service hotels, resorts and convention-oriented lodging facilities.

Host Hotels typically invests in hotel real estate while relying on hotel management companies and major hospitality brands to operate its properties.