Sunstone Hotel Investors (NYSE:SHO) Hits New 1-Year High – Time to Buy?

Shares of Sunstone Hotel Investors, Inc. (NYSE:SHO) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $12.14 and last traded at $12.14, with a volume of 956422 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $10.77.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company raised Sunstone Hotel Investors from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $10.50 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, September 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $11.42.

Sunstone Hotel Investors Stock Up 9.0 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 2.98 and a current ratio of 2.98. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $10.39 and its 200-day moving average price is $10.26. The company has a market cap of $2.36 billion, a PE ratio of 15.97, a PEG ratio of 5.69 and a beta of 1.25.

Sunstone Hotel Investors (NYSE:SHO) last posted its quarterly 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 business had revenue of $226.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $224.61 million. Sunstone Hotel Investors had a net margin of 18.61% and a return on equity of 9.04%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.23 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Sunstone Hotel Investors, Inc. will post 0.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Sunstone Hotel Investors Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.09 per share. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.07%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. Sunstone Hotel Investors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 42.11%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sunstone Hotel Investors

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. New York State Teachers Retirement System increased its position in shares of Sunstone Hotel Investors by 0.5% during the third quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 294,316 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $3,037,000 after buying an additional 1,386 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in shares of Sunstone Hotel Investors by 5.5% during the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 31,119 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $326,000 after purchasing an additional 1,635 shares in the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Sunstone Hotel Investors by 12.1% in the second quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 17,479 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $184,000 after purchasing an additional 1,881 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Sunstone Hotel Investors by 34.8% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 7,510 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $80,000 after purchasing an additional 1,937 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Diversified Trust Co lifted its position in Sunstone Hotel Investors by 5.8% during the second quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 36,571 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $383,000 after buying an additional 2,018 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.37% of the company’s stock.

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.