Sunstone Hotel Investors (NYSE:SHO) Reaches New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Sunstone Hotel Investors, Inc. (NYSE:SHO) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $12.41 and last traded at $12.36, with a volume of 86309 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $12.21.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Sunstone Hotel Investors from $11.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $12.20.

Sunstone Hotel Investors Stock Up 0.4 %

The company has a market capitalization of $2.49 billion, a PE ratio of 16.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.45 and a beta of 1.25. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $10.73 and its 200-day simple moving average is $10.39. The company has a current ratio of 2.98, a quick ratio of 2.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44.

Sunstone Hotel Investors (NYSE:SHO) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.20 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $226.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $224.61 million. Sunstone Hotel Investors had a return on equity of 9.04% and a net margin of 18.61%. The company’s revenue was down 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.23 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Sunstone Hotel Investors, Inc. will post 0.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sunstone Hotel Investors Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a $0.09 dividend. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. Sunstone Hotel Investors’s dividend payout ratio is currently 44.74%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sunstone Hotel Investors

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Sunstone Hotel Investors by 368.0% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,767,636 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $18,489,000 after acquiring an additional 1,389,917 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in shares of Sunstone Hotel Investors by 460.0% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,414,372 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $14,596,000 after purchasing an additional 1,161,792 shares during the period. Heitman Real Estate Securities LLC grew its holdings in Sunstone Hotel Investors by 976.5% in the third quarter. Heitman Real Estate Securities LLC now owns 1,238,002 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $12,776,000 after purchasing an additional 1,123,001 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. lifted its stake in Sunstone Hotel Investors by 318.0% in the 2nd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 1,367,061 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $14,299,000 after buying an additional 1,039,986 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NFJ Investment Group LLC purchased a new position in Sunstone Hotel Investors in the 3rd quarter valued at about $3,220,000. 99.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sunstone Hotel Investors Company Profile

Sunstone Hotel Investors, Inc is a lodging real estate investment trust ("REIT") that as of the date of this release owns 14 hotels comprised of 6,675 rooms, the majority of which are operated under nationally recognized brands. Sunstone's strategy is to create long-term stakeholder value through the acquisition, active ownership, and disposition of well-located hotel and resort real estate.