Host Hotels & Resorts (NASDAQ:HST) Sets New 52-Week Low – What’s Next?

Shares of Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (NASDAQ:HST) hit a new 52-week low during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $15.66 and last traded at $15.72, with a volume of 1737117 shares. The stock had previously closed at $16.14.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HST has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from $22.00 to $20.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Raymond James cut their target price on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from $23.00 to $20.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Host Hotels & Resorts from $21.00 to $20.50 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. StockNews.com downgraded Host Hotels & Resorts from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price objective on Host Hotels & Resorts from $19.00 to $18.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Host Hotels & Resorts currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $20.54.

Host Hotels & Resorts Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $11.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.01 and a beta of 1.30. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $16.93 and a 200 day moving average price of $17.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 2.90 and a current ratio of 1.91.

Host Hotels & Resorts (NASDAQ:HST) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.29. The business had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.37 billion. Host Hotels & Resorts had a net margin of 12.26% and a return on equity of 10.37%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. will post 1.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Host Hotels & Resorts Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.05%. Host Hotels & Resorts’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 80.81%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Host Hotels & Resorts

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of HST. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH bought a new position in Host Hotels & Resorts in the 4th quarter worth $198,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new stake in Host Hotels & Resorts in the 4th quarter worth about $26,068,000. Employees Retirement System of Texas increased its position in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts by 29.3% during the fourth quarter. Employees Retirement System of Texas now owns 618,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,827,000 after acquiring an additional 140,000 shares during the period. Ascent Group LLC increased its position in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 16,549 shares of the company’s stock worth $290,000 after acquiring an additional 703 shares during the period. Finally, Toronto Dominion Bank increased its position in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts by 5.9% during the fourth quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 374,284 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,557,000 after acquiring an additional 20,691 shares during the period. 98.52% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Host Hotels & Resorts Company Profile

Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the management of luxury and upper-upscale hotels. It operates through the following geographical segments: United States, Brazil, and Canada. The company was founded in 1927 and is headquartered in Bethesda, MD.