Xponance Inc. Trims Stake in Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (NASDAQ:HST)

Xponance Inc. reduced its position in Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (NASDAQ:HST) by 10.6% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 94,264 shares of the company’s stock after selling 11,161 shares during the period. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Host Hotels & Resorts were worth $1,835,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in HST. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. raised its stake in Host Hotels & Resorts by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 82,823 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,613,000 after acquiring an additional 610 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Strategies LLC raised its stake in Host Hotels & Resorts by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Eagle Strategies LLC now owns 21,591 shares of the company’s stock valued at $420,000 after acquiring an additional 617 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its stake in Host Hotels & Resorts by 57.5% during the 3rd quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,750 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 639 shares during the last quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Host Hotels & Resorts by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 67,550 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,086,000 after acquiring an additional 658 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC raised its stake in Host Hotels & Resorts by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC now owns 279,681 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,494,000 after acquiring an additional 715 shares during the last quarter. 98.52% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Host Hotels & Resorts

In related news, CEO James F. Risoleo sold 28,136 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.04, for a total value of $591,981.44. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 2,225,577 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $46,826,140.08. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. UBS Group dropped their target price on Host Hotels & Resorts from $21.00 to $20.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on Host Hotels & Resorts from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 5th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Host Hotels & Resorts from $21.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. Bank of America upgraded Host Hotels & Resorts from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $18.00 to $23.00 in a research report on Monday, January 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Host Hotels & Resorts from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Host Hotels & Resorts currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $21.33.

Host Hotels & Resorts Stock Performance

HST opened at $19.29 on Wednesday. Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. has a 1-year low of $14.92 and a 1-year high of $21.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 3.29 and a quick ratio of 3.29. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $20.28 and its 200 day simple moving average is $18.88. The stock has a market cap of $13.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.55, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.31.

Host Hotels & Resorts (NASDAQ:HST) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The company reported $0.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44 by ($0.25). Host Hotels & Resorts had a net margin of 13.93% and a return on equity of 10.82%. The company had revenue of $1.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.29 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.44 EPS. Host Hotels & Resorts’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. will post 1.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Host Hotels & Resorts Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 28th were paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.15%. This is a positive change from Host Hotels & Resorts’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. Host Hotels & Resorts’s dividend payout ratio is presently 76.92%.

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.