Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC Cuts Position in Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (NASDAQ:HST)

Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (NASDAQ:HST) by 11.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 1,355,245 shares of the company’s stock after selling 177,681 shares during the period. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.19% of Host Hotels & Resorts worth $23,744,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Private Advisor Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $375,000. Vert Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts by 9.4% during the fourth quarter. Vert Asset Management LLC now owns 309,446 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,421,000 after purchasing an additional 26,678 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc raised its stake in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts by 716.4% during the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 2,841 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 2,493 shares during the period. KBC Group NV raised its stake 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 valued at $98,305,000 after purchasing an additional 3,412,589 shares during the period. Finally, New England Research & Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $349,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.52% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on HST shares. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from $15.00 to $14.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the company from $20.00 to $14.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 17th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from $19.00 to $18.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Compass Point cut shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the company from $20.00 to $18.00 in a report on Monday, March 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $18.90.

Host Hotels & Resorts Stock Down 1.8%

HST stock opened at $15.14 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.91 and a quick ratio of 2.90. Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. has a 1-year low of $12.22 and a 1-year high of $19.37. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $14.35 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $16.27. The firm has a market cap of $10.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.29 and a beta of 1.29.

Host Hotels & Resorts (NASDAQ:HST) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.56 by $0.08. Host Hotels & Resorts had a net margin of 12.26% and a return on equity of 10.37%. The firm had revenue of $1.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.55 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.60 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. will post 1.88 EPS for the current year.

Host Hotels & Resorts Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.28%. Host Hotels & Resorts’s dividend payout ratio is currently 83.33%.

Host Hotels & Resorts 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.