Securian Asset Management Inc. Sells 6,388 Shares of Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (NASDAQ:HST)

Securian Asset Management Inc. decreased its position in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (NASDAQ:HST) by 12.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 44,677 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,388 shares during the quarter. Securian Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Host Hotels & Resorts were worth $870,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC raised its position in Host Hotels & Resorts by 11.2% in the 4th quarter. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC now owns 1,367,256 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,620,000 after buying an additional 137,480 shares during the last quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts in the 4th quarter worth $1,214,000. Panagora Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts by 33.0% in the fourth quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 89,811 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,749,000 after purchasing an additional 22,261 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Host Hotels & Resorts by 57.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 37,561 shares of the company’s stock valued at $731,000 after purchasing an additional 13,761 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lmcg Investments LLC boosted its holdings in Host Hotels & Resorts by 43.8% during the fourth quarter. Lmcg Investments LLC now owns 78,122 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,521,000 after purchasing an additional 23,780 shares during the last quarter. 98.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on HST. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Host Hotels & Resorts from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. Truist Financial upped their price target on Host Hotels & Resorts from $21.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. Finally, Raymond James raised their price objective on shares of Host Hotels & Resorts from $19.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $21.29.

Host Hotels & Resorts Price Performance

Shares of Host Hotels & Resorts stock opened at $18.34 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 6.66 and a current ratio of 6.66. Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. has a 52-week low of $14.92 and a 52-week high of $21.31. The company has a fifty day moving average of $19.56 and a 200-day moving average of $19.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.32.

Host Hotels & Resorts (NASDAQ:HST) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The company reported $0.19 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.44 by ($0.25). The firm had revenue of $1.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.29 billion. Host Hotels & Resorts had a return on equity of 10.59% and a net margin of 13.35%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.44 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. will post 2.01 EPS for the current year.

Host Hotels & Resorts Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This is a positive change from Host Hotels & Resorts’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. 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 4.36%. Host Hotels & Resorts’s dividend payout ratio is presently 78.43%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO James F. Risoleo sold 28,136 shares of the business’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 transaction of $591,981.44. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,225,577 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $46,826,140.08. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, CEO James F. Risoleo sold 28,136 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.04, for a total value of $591,981.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,225,577 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $46,826,140.08. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Walter C. Rakowich sold 3,896 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.64, for a total transaction of $72,621.44. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 64,457 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,201,478.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Host Hotels & Resorts 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.