Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Grows Stock Holdings in Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (NASDAQ:HST)

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (NASDAQ:HST - Free Report) by 9.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,147,713 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 102,018 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned approximately 0.16% of Host Hotels & Resorts worth $22,449,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its position in Host Hotels & Resorts by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 82,823 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,613,000 after acquiring an additional 610 shares in the last quarter. Eagle Strategies LLC increased its stake in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Eagle Strategies LLC now owns 21,591 shares of the company's stock worth $420,000 after purchasing an additional 617 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its stake in Host Hotels & Resorts by 57.5% in the 3rd quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,750 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 639 shares during the last quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Host Hotels & Resorts by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 67,550 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,086,000 after buying an additional 658 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amalgamated Bank grew its stake in Host Hotels & Resorts by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 238,115 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,636,000 after buying an additional 662 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.52% of the company's stock.

Host Hotels & Resorts Price Performance

HST traded down $0.33 during trading on Friday, reaching $18.42. 5,608,881 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,061,231. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 6.66 and a current ratio of 6.66. Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. has a 12-month low of $14.92 and a 12-month high of $21.31. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $19.72 and a 200 day simple moving average of $19.17. The company has a market cap of $12.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.01, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.32.

Host Hotels & Resorts (NASDAQ:HST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The company reported $0.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.44 by ($0.25). The company had revenue of $1.32 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.29 billion. Host Hotels & Resorts had a return on equity of 10.59% and a net margin of 13.35%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.44 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. will post 2 EPS for the current year.

Host Hotels & Resorts Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 28th were issued a $0.20 dividend. This is an increase from Host Hotels & Resorts's previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.34%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. Host Hotels & Resorts's payout ratio is presently 78.43%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on HST shares. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from $21.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. Raymond James raised their price objective on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from $19.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from $21.00 to $20.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Host Hotels & Resorts currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $21.29.

Insider Activity at Host Hotels & Resorts

In related news, CEO James F. Risoleo sold 28,136 shares of Host Hotels & Resorts stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.04, for a total value of $591,981.44. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,225,577 shares in the company, valued at $46,826,140.08. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Walter C. Rakowich sold 3,896 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.64, for a total value of $72,621.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 64,457 shares in the company, valued at $1,201,478.48. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO James F. Risoleo sold 28,136 shares of the 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 2,225,577 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,826,140.08. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Host Hotels & Resorts Company Profile

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.