Hyatt Hotels (NYSE:H) Hits New 52-Week High After Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Hyatt Hotels Corporation (NYSE:H) hit a new 52-week high on Friday after HSBC upgraded the stock from a hold rating to a buy rating. HSBC now has a $212.00 price target on the stock. Hyatt Hotels traded as high as $195.04 and last traded at $193.06, with a volume of 245466 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $189.13.

H has been the subject of several other reports. Citigroup upped their target price on Hyatt Hotels from $167.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Hyatt Hotels from $183.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday. Barclays upped their target price on Hyatt Hotels from $197.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen raised Hyatt Hotels from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 23rd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upped their target price on Hyatt Hotels from $186.00 to $202.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Hyatt Hotels currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $192.40.

Insider Transactions at Hyatt Hotels

In related news, insider Jnp 2010-Pg Trust sold 213,434 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.75, for a total value of $35,803,553.50. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 213,434 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $35,803,553.50. This trade represents a 50.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Cary D. Mcmillan sold 1,119 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $174.96, for a total value of $195,780.24. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 237,458 shares of company stock worth $40,093,807. 23.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bamco Inc. NY grew its holdings in Hyatt Hotels by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Bamco Inc. NY now owns 6,116,673 shares of the company’s stock valued at $868,139,000 after buying an additional 161,461 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Hyatt Hotels by 48.0% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,676,116 shares of the company’s stock valued at $749,675,000 after buying an additional 1,516,554 shares during the last quarter. Veritas Asset Management LLP grew its holdings in Hyatt Hotels by 827.9% in the 4th quarter. Veritas Asset Management LLP now owns 1,900,417 shares of the company’s stock valued at $304,675,000 after buying an additional 1,695,616 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia grew its holdings in Hyatt Hotels by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 1,605,243 shares of the company’s stock valued at $257,352,000 after buying an additional 43,733 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in Hyatt Hotels by 15.8% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,421,926 shares of the company’s stock valued at $201,814,000 after buying an additional 193,530 shares during the last quarter. 73.54% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Hyatt Hotels Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $18.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -551.68 and a beta of 1.33. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $164.62 and a 200-day simple moving average of $161.86. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03.

Hyatt Hotels (NYSE:H) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $1.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.74 billion. Hyatt Hotels had a positive return on equity of 6.01% and a negative net margin of 0.48%.During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.46 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Hyatt Hotels Corporation will post 3.59 EPS for the current year.

Hyatt Hotels Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 29th. Hyatt Hotels’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -171.43%.

About Hyatt Hotels

Hyatt Hotels Corporation (NYSE: H) is a global hospitality company that develops, owns, manages and franchises luxury and business hotels, resorts and vacation properties. Its portfolio spans a range of price points and styles under brands such as Park Hyatt, Grand Hyatt, Andaz, Hyatt Regency, Hyatt Centric, Hyatt Place, Hyatt House, Thompson Hotels, Alila and Destination by Hyatt. In addition to accommodations, the company provides meeting and event spaces, food and beverage outlets, spa and wellness centers, and a variety of guest services designed to cater to both leisure and business travelers.

Hyatt’s business model combines property ownership, management contracts and third-party franchising.