Hyatt Hotels Co. (NYSE:H) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Hyatt Hotels Co. (NYSE:H) has earned an average rating of “Hold” from the nineteen research firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $162.08.

Several brokerages have issued reports on H. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Hyatt Hotels from $145.50 to $157.50 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Hyatt Hotels from $172.00 to $170.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Hyatt Hotels from $157.00 to $144.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Macquarie decreased their price target on Hyatt Hotels from $172.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Hyatt Hotels from $163.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th.

Hyatt Hotels Stock Down 1.9 %

H stock opened at $137.24 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $152.75 and a 200-day moving average of $152.87. Hyatt Hotels has a fifty-two week low of $128.91 and a fifty-two week high of $168.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.03 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.83.

Hyatt Hotels (NYSE:H) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by ($0.22). The firm had revenue of $1.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.63 billion. Hyatt Hotels had a return on equity of 9.81% and a net margin of 19.50%. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.64 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Hyatt Hotels will post 3.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hyatt Hotels Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.44%. Hyatt Hotels’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 4.82%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hyatt Hotels news, Director Susan D. Kronick sold 1,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.78, for a total value of $226,848.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 37,927 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,377,290.06. The trade was a 4.05 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 23.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hyatt Hotels

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Bamco Inc. NY raised its stake in Hyatt Hotels by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Bamco Inc. NY now owns 5,550,789 shares of the company’s stock valued at $871,363,000 after purchasing an additional 67,385 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in Hyatt Hotels by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,849,892 shares of the company’s stock valued at $447,376,000 after buying an additional 9,477 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Hyatt Hotels by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,694,357 shares of the company’s stock valued at $422,960,000 after buying an additional 46,413 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Hyatt Hotels by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,755,535 shares of the company’s stock worth $267,192,000 after acquiring an additional 56,082 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its position in shares of Hyatt Hotels by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 1,716,986 shares of the company’s stock worth $269,532,000 after acquiring an additional 37,057 shares in the last quarter. 73.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Hyatt Hotels

Hyatt Hotels Corporation operates as a hospitality company in the United States and internationally. It operates through Owned and Leased Hotels, Americas Management and Franchising, ASPAC Management and Franchising, EAME Management and Franchising, and Apple Leisure Group segments. The company manages, franchises, licenses, owns, and leases portfolio of properties, consisting of full-service hotels and resorts, select service hotels, and other properties, including timeshare, fractional, residential, vacation, and condominium units.