Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Increases Stock Position in Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (NASDAQ:HST)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund raised its holdings in Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (NASDAQ:HST) by 28.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 26,782 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,985 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in Host Hotels & Resorts were worth $521,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 51,243,563 shares of the company’s stock worth $912,056,000 after purchasing an additional 950,431 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Host Hotels & Resorts by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 18,902,882 shares of the company’s stock worth $331,698,000 after acquiring an additional 180,904 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its stake in Host Hotels & Resorts by 66.9% in the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 13,637,328 shares of the company’s stock worth $240,017,000 after acquiring an additional 5,466,629 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Host Hotels & Resorts by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,300,937 shares of the company’s stock worth $181,296,000 after acquiring an additional 181,103 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in Host Hotels & Resorts by 537.4% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 6,893,087 shares of the company’s stock worth $121,318,000 after acquiring an additional 5,811,722 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.52% of the company’s stock.

Host Hotels & Resorts Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of Host Hotels & Resorts stock opened at $17.08 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $17.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $17.47. The company has a current ratio of 2.90, a quick ratio of 2.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. has a twelve month low of $15.71 and a twelve month high of $21.31. The stock has a market cap of $11.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.58 and a beta of 1.30.

Host Hotels & Resorts (NASDAQ:HST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.29. Host Hotels & Resorts had a net margin of 12.92% and a return on equity of 10.72%. Equities research analysts forecast that Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. will post 1.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Host Hotels & Resorts Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.68%. Host Hotels & Resorts’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.67%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on HST shares. StockNews.com cut shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from $19.00 to $18.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Raymond James lowered their price objective on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from $23.00 to $20.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from $22.00 to $20.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from $21.00 to $20.50 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $20.54.

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.