Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (NASDAQ:HST) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (NASDAQ:HST) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 40,860,000 shares, an increase of 5.3% from the August 15th total of 38,820,000 shares. Approximately 5.9% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 7,620,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.4 days.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of HST. Czech National Bank raised its holdings in Host Hotels & Resorts by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 124,122 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,567,000 after buying an additional 569 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts by 3.8% during the first quarter. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC now owns 15,774 shares of the company’s stock worth $326,000 after purchasing an additional 579 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts by 3.0% in the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 19,858 shares of the company’s stock worth $357,000 after purchasing an additional 584 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in Host Hotels & Resorts by 16.1% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 4,460 shares of the company’s stock valued at $92,000 after purchasing an additional 618 shares during the period. Finally, Gulf International Bank UK Ltd increased its holdings in Host Hotels & Resorts by 16.3% during the 1st quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd now owns 4,475 shares of the company’s stock valued at $92,000 after purchasing an additional 627 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.52% of the company’s stock.

Host Hotels & Resorts Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of HST traded up $0.07 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $17.88. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 9,059,374 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,655,888. The company has a current ratio of 4.55, a quick ratio of 4.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. Host Hotels & Resorts has a 52 week low of $14.92 and a 52 week high of $21.31. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $17.18 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $18.40. The stock has a market cap of $12.61 billion, a PE ratio of 17.51, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.32.

Host Hotels & Resorts Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.47%. Host Hotels & Resorts’s payout ratio is 78.43%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on HST. Truist Financial decreased their price target on Host Hotels & Resorts from $23.00 to $20.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 5th. Compass Point downgraded shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the company from $25.00 to $18.00 in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from $21.00 to $19.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Host Hotels & Resorts from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Host Hotels & Resorts has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $21.06.

Host Hotels & Resorts Company Profile

Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc is an S&P 500 company and is the largest lodging real estate investment trust and one of the largest owners of luxury and upper-upscale hotels. The Company currently owns 72 properties in the United States and five properties internationally totaling approximately 42,000 rooms.