Hyatt Hotels Co. (NYSE:H) Sees Significant Drop in Short Interest

Hyatt Hotels Co. (NYSE:H) saw a large decrease in short interest during the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 4,510,000 shares, a decrease of 10.3% from the October 15th total of 5,030,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 528,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 8.5 days.

Hyatt Hotels Stock Performance

NYSE:H traded down $0.26 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $152.68. The stock had a trading volume of 525,010 shares, compared to its average volume of 586,531. Hyatt Hotels has a twelve month low of $112.85 and a twelve month high of $162.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.79. The stock has a market cap of $14.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.51 and a beta of 1.50. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $152.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $149.20.

Hyatt Hotels (NYSE:H) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $1.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.64 billion. Hyatt Hotels had a return on equity of 10.74% and a net margin of 20.55%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.70 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Hyatt Hotels will post 3.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Hyatt Hotels Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 22nd will be given a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.39%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 22nd. Hyatt Hotels’s payout ratio is presently 4.52%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently issued reports on H. Mizuho lowered their target price on Hyatt Hotels from $200.00 to $198.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Susquehanna lowered their price objective on shares of Hyatt Hotels from $160.00 to $150.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. HSBC cut shares of Hyatt Hotels from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $156.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Barclays lowered their target price on Hyatt Hotels from $151.00 to $144.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Bank of America upped their price objective on Hyatt Hotels from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $151.57.

Insider Activity

In other Hyatt Hotels news, insider Mark Samuel Hoplamazian sold 51,388 shares of Hyatt Hotels stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.77, for a total transaction of $7,696,380.76. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 623,556 shares in the company, valued at approximately $93,389,982.12. The trade was a 7.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 23.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hyatt Hotels

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of H. LRI Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Hyatt Hotels during the first quarter worth approximately $26,000. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new position in Hyatt Hotels during the 2nd quarter worth $30,000. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt acquired a new position in Hyatt Hotels in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Hyatt Hotels by 190.2% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 325 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 213 shares during the period. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hyatt Hotels by 1,107.1% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 338 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 310 shares in the last quarter. 71.02% 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.