Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. HST is scheduled to release second-quarter 2026 earnings results on Aug. 5, after market close. The company’s quarterly results are likely to display a year-over-year rise in revenues and adjusted funds from operations (AFFO) per share.
In the previous quarter, this Bethesda, MD-based lodging real estate investment trust (REIT) reported an AFFO per share of 67 cents, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 63 cents. The results reflected higher revenues, driven by year-over-year comparable hotel RevPAR growth.
Over the trailing four quarters, Host Hotels’ AFFO per share surpassed estimates on all occasions, the average surprise being 8.66%. The graph below depicts this surprising history:
Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. Price and EPS Surprise
Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. price-eps-surprise | Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. Quote
HST’s Upcoming Results
Host Hotels & Resorts benefits from a portfolio of luxury and upper-upscale hotels across key U.S. markets, including gateway cities and resort destinations. The company’s properties are strategically positioned in high-demand locations, which continue to support steady room pricing.
The continued recovery in group demand, along with stable transient and leisure travel, is likely to have supported revenue per available room (RevPAR) growth in the to-be-reported quarter.
Host Hotels’ disciplined capital allocation strategy and ongoing reinvestment in its portfolio are likely to have enhanced asset quality and strengthened its competitive positioning. This, along with rate-led growth, is expected to have aided EBITDA growth and modest margin expansion, even in a rising cost environment.
However, elevated interest expenses are expected to have acted as a headwind to the bottom-line growth during the second quarter.
Q2 Estimates for HST
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for HST’s quarterly revenues is presently pegged at $1.62 billion, implying growth of 2.2% from the prior-year period’s reported figure.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for quarterly RevPAR is pinned at $244.77, indicating an increase from $239.64 reported in the year-ago quarter.
The company’s activities during the to-be-reported quarter were adequate to garner analysts’ confidence. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for AFFO per share has moved northward to 62 cents over the past month. The figure implies a 6.90% rise from the year-ago reported number.
However, the consensus mark for the average occupancy rate in the second quarter is pegged at 72.09%, implying a decrease from the prior-year quarter’s reported figure of 73.80%.
We expect second-quarter 2026 interest expenses to rise 3.8% year over year.
What Our Quantitative Model Predicts for HST
Our proven model predicts a likely surprise in terms of AFFO per share for Host Hotels this season. The combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the chances of an AFFO beat, which is the case here.
Host Hotels currently has an Earnings ESP of +1.48% and carries a Zacks Rank of 2. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.
Other Stocks That Warrant a Look
Here are two stocks from the broader REIT industry — Ryman Hospitality Properties RHP and Lamar Advertising LAMR — that you may want to consider, as our model shows that these have the right combination of elements to report a surprise this quarter.
RHP, scheduled to report quarterly numbers on Aug. 6, has an Earnings ESP of +0.25% and a Zacks Rank of 2 at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Lamar Advertising is slated to report quarterly numbers on Aug. 6. LAMR has an Earnings ESP of +0.22% and a Zacks Rank of 3 at present.
Note: Anything related to earnings presented in this write-up represents funds from operations (FFO), a widely used metric to gauge the performance of REITs.
Beyond Nvidia: AI's Second Wave Is Here
The AI revolution has already minted millionaires. But the stocks everyone knows about aren't likely to keep delivering the biggest profits. AI’s second wave is moving from infrastructure to implementation and these companies are at the forefront of this transition, positioned to become what Amazon and Google were to the internet era.
See Stocks Now >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (HST): Free Stock Analysis Report
Lamar Advertising Company (LAMR): Free Stock Analysis Report
Ryman Hospitality Properties, Inc. (RHP): Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).