Host Hotels & Resorts (NASDAQ:HST) Upgraded by Morgan Stanley to “Equal Weight” Rating

Host Hotels & Resorts (NASDAQ:HST) was upgraded by Morgan Stanley from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage presently has a $15.00 price target on the stock, down from their prior price target of $16.00. Morgan Stanley’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 0.27% from the company’s previous close.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on 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. UBS Group cut their price target on 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. Citigroup cut their target price on Host Hotels & Resorts from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Compass Point downgraded Host Hotels & Resorts from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $20.00 to $18.00 in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Raymond James reduced their price objective on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from $23.00 to $20.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $19.75.

Host Hotels & Resorts Stock Down 1.1 %

HST stock opened at $14.96 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $10.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.11 and a beta of 1.30. 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 business’s 50-day moving average is $16.37 and its two-hundred day moving average is $17.32. Host Hotels & Resorts has a fifty-two week low of $14.47 and a fifty-two week high of $21.27.

Host Hotels & Resorts (NASDAQ:HST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.15 by $0.29. The firm had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.37 billion. Host Hotels & Resorts had a net margin of 12.26% and a return on equity of 10.37%. As a group, analysts forecast that Host Hotels & Resorts will post 1.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Host Hotels & Resorts

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. National Pension Service bought a new stake in Host Hotels & Resorts during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its holdings in 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 buying an additional 1,088 shares during the period. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its holdings in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts by 94.9% in the 4th 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 during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts in the 4th quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Eastern Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts during the 4th quarter worth $45,000. Hedge funds and other 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.