Russell Investments Group Ltd. Cuts Stock Holdings in Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (NASDAQ:HST)

Key Points

• Russell Investments Group Ltd. has reduced its stake in Host Hotels & Resorts by 8.0%, now owning approximately 3.66 million shares valued at around $52 million.
• Analysts show a generally positive outlook on Host Hotels & Resorts, with ratings ranging from "hold" to "buy," and recent price targets raised, with a consensus target of $17.50.
• The company recently reported better-than-expected earnings of $0.58 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding analyst predictions of $0.51 EPS, contributing to overall revenue growth of 8.2% year-over-year.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. reduced its position in Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (NASDAQ:HST - Free Report) by 8.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,663,355 shares of the company's stock after selling 317,452 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned about 0.53% of Host Hotels & Resorts worth $52,056,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Freedom Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Freedom Investment Management Inc. now owns 22,216 shares of the company's stock valued at $389,000 after acquiring an additional 622 shares during the last quarter. Evergreen Wealth Solutions LLC increased its stake in Host Hotels & Resorts by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Evergreen Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 12,932 shares of the company's stock worth $227,000 after buying an additional 651 shares during the period. Ascent Group LLC lifted its holdings in Host Hotels & Resorts by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 16,549 shares of the company's stock valued at $290,000 after buying an additional 703 shares in the last quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in Host Hotels & Resorts by 5.2% in the 1st quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC now owns 15,255 shares of the company's stock valued at $220,000 after buying an additional 760 shares during the period. Finally, Impact Investors Inc grew its stake in Host Hotels & Resorts by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. Impact Investors Inc now owns 59,112 shares of the company's stock worth $840,000 after acquiring an additional 773 shares in the last quarter. 98.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Host Hotels & Resorts Stock Performance

NASDAQ HST traded down $0.26 on Friday, reaching $15.72. 10,900,992 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 10,896,119. Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $12.22 and a fifty-two week high of $19.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a current ratio of 2.20. The firm has a market cap of $10.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.72 and a beta of 1.34. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $15.92 and a 200-day moving average price of $15.39.

Host Hotels & Resorts (NASDAQ:HST - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $1.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.51 billion. Host Hotels & Resorts had a net margin of 11.12% and a return on equity of 9.90%. The business's revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.57 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. will post 1.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Host Hotels & Resorts Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th were issued a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 30th. Host Hotels & Resorts's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 85.11%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on HST shares. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Host Hotels & Resorts from $17.00 to $18.50 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $16.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Host Hotels & Resorts from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Host Hotels & Resorts currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $17.50.

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.