DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
Host Hotels & Resorts Inc. (HST) boosted its stock offering
by 10% and announced it priced the shares at a 7.6% discount to
Thursday's closing price.
The real-estate investment trust priced 66 million common shares
at $6.60 each. Host's shares closed Thursday at $7.10 and were up
2.1% at $7.26 in premarket trading even as the company cut its
full-year outlook.
As REITs have been slammed amid the global recession, hotel
REITs have seen particular pressure on cuts in airline capacity, a
pullback in consumer spending and a drop in corporate travel.
Host Hotels plans to use the stock-sale proceeds for general
corporate purposes and to pay down debt. Host will sell an
additional 9.8 million shares if there is sufficient demand. There
are 525 million shares currently outstanding.
In February, Host unexpectedly projected a loss for 2009,
forecast capital spending at half of last year's level and said it
would suspend its quarterly dividend in favor of a lump-sum payout
at the end of the year. The loss projection was widened Thursday as
revenue per available room, a key lodging measurement, is expected
to fall more than previously thought.
-By Kerry E. Grace, Dow Jones Newswires; 201-938-5089;
kerry.grace@dowjones.com