Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (
HST
)
announced the disposition of an Atlanta-based hotel - Atlanta
Marriott Marquis - for $293 million to an undisclosed buyer. This
move is in line with the company's ongoing successful execution
of its assets disposition strategy.
The company intends to utilize the sales proceeds to fund
potential acquisitions, reduce outstanding debt and for other
corporate purposes. The property sale reduced Host Hotels'
Atlanta presence to about 3% of total revenues. Host Hotels - the
largest lodging real estate investment trust (REIT) - currently
owns seven properties in the Atlanta market.
Atlanta Marriott Marquis is a 52-story hotel comprising 1,663
rooms. This 14th-tallest skyscraper in the city was managed by
Marriott International, Inc. (
MAR
)
. According to Databank Inc., Host Hotels acquired the property
early in 1998 for $229.5 million.
In our viewpoint, the deal is a strategic fit for Host Hotels as
it would help finance the upscale assets acquisition and
accelerate its portfolio restructuring initiatives. Also, the
portfolio of hotels under premium brands, such as Marriott,
Westin, Sheraton and Hyatt, promises steady source of income.
Lately, Host Hotels is actively selling off its non-core assets
and restructuring its portfolio through addition of core assets.
Accordingly, the company sold four hotels in 2012 and generated
net proceeds of around $450 million. The shedding of the Host
Hotels' 94.8% ownership interest in the Toronto Airport Marriott
Hotel for CAD$30.6 million (USD $30.6) in late-November 2012 is a
noteworthy one.
Host Hotels is scheduled to release its fourth-quarter 2012
results on Feb 21, 2013, prior to the opening bell. The Zacks
Consensus Estimate for the company's fourth-quarter FFO (funds
from operations) is currently pegged at 37 cents per share.
The Earnings ESP (Expected Surprise Prediction), the percentage
difference between the Most Accurate Estimate and the Zacks
Consensus Estimate, for Host Hotels is 0.00%. This, combined with
a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), indicates that the company may report in
line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate in the fourth quarter.
Note: FFO, a widely accepted and reported measure of the
performance of REITs is derived by adding depreciation,
amortization and other non-cash expenses to net income.
HOST HOTEL&RSRT (HST): Free Stock Analysis
Report
MARRIOTT INTL-A (MAR): Free Stock Analysis
Report
To read this article on Zacks.com click here.
Zacks Investment
Research