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Host Hotels & Resorts – HST – Cash dividend of $.08 per share

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Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (NYSE: HST), the nation’s largest lodging real estate investment trust (“REIT”), announced results of operations for the third quarter ended September 7, 2012.

Increase in total revenues for the third quarter and year-to-date 2012 reflect the improved performance of the Company’s owned hotels as comparable hotel RevPAR increased 7.6% and 6.7% and comparable food and beverage revenues increased 4.5% and 5.4% for the third quarter and year-to-date, respectively. In addition, year-to-date 2012 revenues benefited from the results of the ten hotels (nearly 4,000 rooms) that were acquired during 2011 and the acquisition of the Grand Hyatt Washington, D.C. on July 16, 2012. These acquisitions increased revenues by an incremental $61 million year-to-date.

The increase in comparable hotel RevPAR was primarily driven by improvements in average room rates coupled with continued occupancy growth. For the third quarter and year-to-date, average room rates improved 4.7% and 3.9%, respectively, while occupancy improved 2.1 percentage points to 78.4% and 2.0 percentage points to 75.4%, respectively. The improvements in revenues led to strong margin growth as comparable hotel adjusted operating profit margins increased 285 basis points and 170 basis points for the third quarter and year-to-date 2012, respectively.

HST – Dividend

On September 17, 2012, the Company’s board of directors authorized a regular quarterly cash dividend of $.08 per share on its common stock. The dividend is payable on October 15, 2012 to stockholders of record on September 28, 2012. The amount of any future dividend is dependent on the Company’s taxable income and will be determined by the Company’s Board of Directors.

HST – 2012 Outlook

The Company anticipates that for 2012:

  • Comparable hotel RevPAR will increase 6.25% to 7.0%;
  • Total revenues under GAAP would increase 7.2% to 7.7%;
  • Total comparable hotel revenues would increase 5.4% to 6.0%;
  • Operating profit margins under GAAP would increase approximately 160 basis points to 190 basis points; and
  • Comparable hotel adjusted operating profit margins will increase approximately 135 basis points to 150 basis points.

Based upon these parameters, the Company estimates that its 2012 guidance is as follows:

  • earnings per diluted share should range from approximately $.15 to $.17;
  • net income should range from $109 million to $126 million;
  • NAREIT FFO per diluted share should be approximately $1.01 to $1.04;
  • Adjusted FFO per diluted share should be approximately $1.06 to $1.09; and
  • Adjusted EBITDA should be approximately $1,155 million to $1,175 million.

About Host Hotels & Resorts – HST

Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (HST) is an S&P 500 and Fortune 500 company and is the largest lodging real estate investment trust and one of the largest owners of luxury and upper-upscale hotels. The Company currently owns 104 properties in the United States and 16 properties internationally totaling approximately 65,000 rooms. The Company also holds non-controlling interests in a joint venture in Europe that owns 14 hotels with approximately 4,400 rooms and a joint venture in Asia that owns one hotel with approximately 300 rooms in Australia and a minority interest in seven hotels with approximately 1,750 rooms in India, two in Bangalore and five that are in various stages of development in two cities.

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edliston
Post Written By: Ed Liston
Ed Liston is a senior contributing editor at TheStockMarketWatch.com. An active market watcher and investor, Ed guides an independent team of experienced analysts and writes for multiple stock trader publications. He is widely quoted in various financial publications on the Internet. When Ed is not writing about stocks, investing in stocks, talking about stocks, or otherwise doing something stock related, he likes to go sailing and fishing in his yacht.

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Ed Liston

Ed Liston is a senior contributing editor at TheStockMarketWatch.com. An active market watcher and investor, Ed guides an independent team of experienced analysts and writes for multiple stock trader publications. He is widely quoted in various financial publications on the Internet. When Ed is not writing about stocks, investing in stocks, talking about stocks, or otherwise doing something stock related, he likes to go sailing and fishing.

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