Host Hotels & Resorts (NASDAQ:HST) Price Target Cut to $20.00 by Analysts at UBS Group

Host Hotels & Resorts (NASDAQ:HST) had its target price cut by UBS Group from $21.00 to $20.00 in a research note released on Friday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the stock.

Several other research firms also recently issued reports on HST. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Host Hotels & Resorts from $21.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a report on Thursday, March 14th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Host Hotels & Resorts from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Thursday, March 21st. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Host Hotels & Resorts from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Host Hotels & Resorts from $21.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 2nd. Finally, Bank of America raised Host Hotels & Resorts from an underperform rating to a buy rating and lifted their target price for the company from $18.00 to $23.00 in a research note on Monday, January 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $21.33.

Host Hotels & Resorts Price Performance

Shares of Host Hotels & Resorts stock opened at $18.71 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $20.29 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $18.79. The company has a current ratio of 3.29, a quick ratio of 3.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The stock has a market cap of $13.16 billion, a PE ratio of 17.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.31. Host Hotels & Resorts has a 52 week low of $14.92 and a 52 week high of $21.31.

Host Hotels & Resorts (NASDAQ:HST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 21st. The company reported $0.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.44 by ($0.25). The company had revenue of $1.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.29 billion. Host Hotels & Resorts had a return on equity of 10.82% and a net margin of 13.93%. Host Hotels & Resorts’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.44 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Host Hotels & Resorts will post 1.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Host Hotels & Resorts Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 28th were paid a $0.20 dividend. This is a boost from Host Hotels & Resorts’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.28%. Host Hotels & Resorts’s payout ratio is presently 76.92%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Host Hotels & Resorts news, CEO James F. Risoleo sold 28,136 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.04, for a total transaction of $591,981.44. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 2,225,577 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $46,826,140.08. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Host Hotels & Resorts

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. US Bancorp DE lifted its holdings in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts by 2.5% during the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 44,045 shares of the company’s stock worth $856,000 after buying an additional 1,066 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts during the first quarter worth approximately $215,000. Cetera Advisor Networks LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts by 7.6% during the first quarter. Cetera Advisor Networks LLC now owns 14,652 shares of the company’s stock worth $285,000 after buying an additional 1,034 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts during the first quarter worth approximately $624,000. Finally, Panagora Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts by 82.0% in the first quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 85,212 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,656,000 after purchasing an additional 38,385 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.52% of the company’s stock.

About Host Hotels & Resorts

Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc is an S&P 500 company and is the largest lodging real estate investment trust and one of the largest owners of luxury and upper-upscale hotels. The Company currently owns 72 properties in the United States and five properties internationally totaling approximately 42,000 rooms.