Park Hotels & Resorts Inc. (NYSE:PK) Short Interest Update

Park Hotels & Resorts Inc. (NYSE:PK - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant drop in short interest in the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 16,280,000 shares, a drop of 19.6% from the November 30th total of 20,260,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 3,110,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 5.2 days. Approximately 8.1% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Park Hotels & Resorts from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Park Hotels & Resorts from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Compass Point cut their target price on Park Hotels & Resorts from $25.00 to $20.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Truist Financial decreased their price target on Park Hotels & Resorts from $20.00 to $18.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, Wolfe Research cut Park Hotels & Resorts from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $18.55.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Park Hotels & Resorts

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in Park Hotels & Resorts by 18.4% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,488,097 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $49,182,000 after purchasing an additional 540,920 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in Park Hotels & Resorts by 43.6% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 687,580 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $9,936,000 after buying an additional 208,877 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of Park Hotels & Resorts by 5.5% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 19,522 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $275,000 after acquiring an additional 1,020 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in shares of Park Hotels & Resorts during the 3rd quarter worth about $477,000. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its position in shares of Park Hotels & Resorts by 22.4% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 319,593 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,507,000 after acquiring an additional 58,432 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.69% of the company's stock.

Park Hotels & Resorts Price Performance

Shares of Park Hotels & Resorts stock traded down $0.14 during trading on Friday, hitting $14.92. 4,578,526 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,812,437. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $14.84 and a 200 day moving average price of $14.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.50, a P/E/G ratio of 6.90 and a beta of 2.03. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. Park Hotels & Resorts has a fifty-two week low of $13.23 and a fifty-two week high of $18.05.

Park Hotels & Resorts (NYSE:PK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.47 by ($0.21). Park Hotels & Resorts had a net margin of 12.66% and a return on equity of 9.63%. The company had revenue of $649.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $646.15 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.51 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Park Hotels & Resorts will post 1.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Park Hotels & Resorts Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a $0.65 dividend. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 17.43%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. This is a positive change from Park Hotels & Resorts's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Park Hotels & Resorts's payout ratio is currently 63.69%.

About Park Hotels & Resorts

Park is one of the largest publicly traded lodging REITs with a diverse portfolio of market-leading hotels and resorts with significant underlying real estate value. Park's portfolio currently consists of 43 premium-branded hotels and resorts with over 26,000 rooms primarily located in prime city center and resort locations.