Hyatt Hotels Co. (NYSE:H) Short Interest Update

Hyatt Hotels Co. (NYSE:H) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 5,030,000 shares, an increase of 5.0% from the September 15th total of 4,790,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 565,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 8.9 days.

Hyatt Hotels Price Performance

H traded down $0.91 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $152.61. 386,433 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 588,358. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.84 and a beta of 1.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. Hyatt Hotels has a one year low of $96.77 and a one year high of $162.24. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $148.16 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $149.18.

Hyatt Hotels (NYSE:H) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The company reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.95 by $0.58. The company had revenue of $1.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.76 billion. Hyatt Hotels had a net margin of 14.55% and a return on equity of 10.25%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.82 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Hyatt Hotels will post 3.93 EPS for the current year.

Hyatt Hotels Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 27th were issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.39%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 27th. Hyatt Hotels’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 9.32%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on H. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Hyatt Hotels from $171.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Hyatt Hotels from $162.00 to $158.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price target on Hyatt Hotels from $185.00 to $178.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on shares of Hyatt Hotels from $127.00 to $120.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Hyatt Hotels in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $151.00 target price for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $148.47.

Insider Activity

In other Hyatt Hotels news, insider Mark Samuel Hoplamazian sold 44,219 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.14, for a total value of $6,550,602.66. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 623,556 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $92,373,585.84. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 23.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hyatt Hotels

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Hyatt Hotels by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,221,373 shares of the company’s stock valued at $550,509,000 after acquiring an additional 144,356 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in Hyatt Hotels by 6.5% during the 2nd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,645,002 shares of the company’s stock worth $401,827,000 after buying an additional 162,562 shares in the last quarter. Fiera Capital Corp lifted its position in Hyatt Hotels by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 574,045 shares of the company’s stock worth $87,209,000 after buying an additional 6,896 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Hyatt Hotels by 10.6% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 485,952 shares of the company’s stock worth $73,822,000 after buying an additional 46,574 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in Hyatt Hotels by 4.7% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 469,791 shares of the company’s stock worth $71,371,000 after buying an additional 20,997 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.02% of the company’s stock.

Hyatt Hotels Company Profile

Hyatt Hotels Corporation operates as a hospitality company in the United States and internationally. It operates through Owned and Leased Hotels, Americas Management and Franchising, ASPAC Management and Franchising, EAME Management and Franchising, and Apple Leisure Group segments. The company manages, franchises, licenses, owns, and leases portfolio of properties, consisting of full-service hotels and resorts, select service hotels, and other properties, including timeshare, fractional, residential, vacation, and condominium units.