Morgan Stanley Upgrades Host Hotels & Resorts (NASDAQ:HST) to Equal Weight

Host Hotels & Resorts (NASDAQ:HST) was upgraded by Morgan Stanley from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report released on Friday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm currently has a $15.00 price objective on the stock, down from their prior price objective of $16.00. Morgan Stanley’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 2.11% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Raymond James cut their price objective on Host Hotels & Resorts from $23.00 to $20.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Citigroup cut their price objective on Host Hotels & Resorts from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Compass Point lowered Host Hotels & Resorts from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $20.00 to $18.00 in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Host Hotels & Resorts from $22.00 to $20.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Host Hotels & Resorts from $21.00 to $20.50 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Host Hotels & Resorts currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $19.54.

Host Hotels & Resorts Trading Down 1.8 %

Shares of HST stock opened at $14.69 on Friday. Host Hotels & Resorts has a 52-week low of $14.25 and a 52-week high of $20.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 2.90 and a current ratio of 1.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.27 billion, a PE ratio of 14.84 and a beta of 1.30. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $16.32 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $17.30.

Host Hotels & Resorts (NASDAQ:HST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.29. The business had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.37 billion. Host Hotels & Resorts had a return on equity of 10.37% and a net margin of 12.26%. On average, analysts predict that Host Hotels & Resorts will post 1.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Host Hotels & Resorts

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HST. National Pension Service bought a new stake in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its stake in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts by 202.6% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,625 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 1,088 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its stake in shares of 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 valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 991 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, Eastern Bank bought a new stake in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Institutional investors own 98.52% of the company’s stock.

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.