Nomura Holdings Inc. Takes $1.83 Million Position in Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (NASDAQ:HST)

Nomura Holdings Inc. bought a new stake in Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (NASDAQ:HST) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 104,187 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,825,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Ritholtz Wealth Management raised its holdings in Host Hotels & Resorts by 10.9% during the fourth quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 106,073 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,858,000 after purchasing an additional 10,463 shares in the last quarter. Avanza Fonder AB purchased a new position in Host Hotels & Resorts during the fourth quarter worth about $1,457,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its holdings in Host Hotels & Resorts by 94.9% during the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 2,035 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 991 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its holdings in Host Hotels & Resorts by 186.5% during the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 52,203 shares of the company’s stock worth $915,000 after purchasing an additional 33,984 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its holdings in Host Hotels & Resorts by 56.8% during the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 12,119 shares of the company’s stock worth $212,000 after purchasing an additional 4,391 shares in the last quarter. 98.52% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 17th. Morgan Stanley cut 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 report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from $22.00 to $20.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $20.00 to $14.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Raymond James lowered their target price on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from $23.00 to $20.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Host Hotels & Resorts currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $18.90.

Host Hotels & Resorts Stock Up 1.0%

HST stock opened at $15.56 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $14.33 and its 200-day simple moving average is $16.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.79 billion, a PE ratio of 15.72 and a beta of 1.29. Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. has a 12 month low of $12.22 and a 12 month high of $19.37. 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 (NASDAQ:HST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.56 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $1.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.55 billion. Host Hotels & Resorts had a net margin of 12.26% and a return on equity of 10.37%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.60 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. will post 1.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Host Hotels & Resorts Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st were given a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.14%. Host Hotels & Resorts’s dividend payout ratio is presently 83.33%.

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.