UBS Group Cuts Host Hotels & Resorts (NASDAQ:HST) Price Target to $18.00

Host Hotels & Resorts (NASDAQ:HST - Free Report) had its price target trimmed by UBS Group from $19.00 to $18.00 in a research note published on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the stock.

HST has been the subject of several other research reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Compass Point raised Host Hotels & Resorts from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $18.00 to $22.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Host Hotels & Resorts from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from $21.00 to $20.50 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Host Hotels & Resorts has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $20.96.

Host Hotels & Resorts Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:HST traded down $0.13 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $17.05. The company's stock had a trading volume of 8,823,236 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,833,776. The company has a 50-day moving average of $17.87 and a 200-day moving average of $17.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 2.90 and a quick ratio of 2.90. The firm has a market cap of $11.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.55 and a beta of 1.31. Host Hotels & Resorts has a 12 month low of $15.71 and a 12 month high of $21.31.

Host Hotels & Resorts (NASDAQ:HST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The company reported $0.12 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.36 by ($0.24). Host Hotels & Resorts had a return on equity of 10.72% and a net margin of 12.92%. The business had revenue of $1.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.29 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.41 EPS. The company's revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Host Hotels & Resorts will post 1.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Host Hotels & Resorts Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.69%. Host Hotels & Resorts's dividend payout ratio is currently 77.67%.

Institutional Trading of Host Hotels & Resorts

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts by 537.4% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 6,893,087 shares of the company's stock worth $121,318,000 after buying an additional 5,811,722 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its stake in Host Hotels & Resorts by 66.9% in the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 13,637,328 shares of the company's stock worth $240,017,000 after purchasing an additional 5,466,629 shares during the period. KBC Group NV lifted its position in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts by 155.2% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 5,610,981 shares of the company's stock worth $98,305,000 after purchasing an additional 3,412,589 shares during the last quarter. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. boosted its stake in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts by 92.9% during the third quarter. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. now owns 2,764,294 shares of the company's stock valued at $48,652,000 after purchasing an additional 1,331,407 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts by 1.9% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 51,243,563 shares of the company's stock worth $912,056,000 after purchasing an additional 950,431 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.52% of the company's stock.

About Host Hotels & Resorts

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.