Sunstone Hotel Investors, Inc. (NYSE:SHO) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Sunstone Hotel Investors, Inc. (NYSE:SHO) have received a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the eight brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $11.71.

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Sunstone Hotel Investors from $10.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Sunstone Hotel Investors from $13.00 to $12.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an “underweight” rating and issued a $10.00 price target on shares of Sunstone Hotel Investors in a report on Tuesday, January 14th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sunstone Hotel Investors

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Sunstone Hotel Investors during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Sunstone Hotel Investors by 442.7% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 3,001 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 2,448 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Sunstone Hotel Investors by 114.1% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,271 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 1,743 shares during the period. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. bought a new stake in Sunstone Hotel Investors in the fourth quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Sunstone Hotel Investors during the third quarter valued at approximately $59,000. 99.37% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Sunstone Hotel Investors Trading Up 2.2 %

Shares of NYSE:SHO opened at $10.58 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $11.40 and a 200 day moving average of $10.91. The company has a market cap of $2.13 billion, a PE ratio of 13.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.52 and a beta of 1.19. Sunstone Hotel Investors has a 12-month low of $9.39 and a 12-month high of $12.41. 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 quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 21st. The real estate investment trust reported $0.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $214.77 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $211.17 million. Sunstone Hotel Investors had a net margin of 18.61% and a return on equity of 9.04%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Sunstone Hotel Investors will post 0.79 EPS for the current year.

Sunstone Hotel Investors Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.09 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.40%. Sunstone Hotel Investors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 257.14%.

About Sunstone Hotel Investors

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.