By otakuyassine3@gmail.com 
Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT – Free Report) by 194.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,633 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,740 shares during the quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $651,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,215,391 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,585,148,000 after purchasing an additional 226,223 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Hilton Worldwide by 15.3% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 10,756,416 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,479,354,000 after buying an additional 1,429,537 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in Hilton Worldwide by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,090,950 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,012,069,000 after buying an additional 121,900 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC increased its holdings in Hilton Worldwide by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,399,270 shares of the company’s stock worth $840,164,000 after buying an additional 164,461 shares during the period. Finally, Stockbridge Partners LLC increased its holdings in Hilton Worldwide by 63.6% in the 3rd quarter. Stockbridge Partners LLC now owns 1,544,399 shares of the company’s stock worth $355,984,000 after buying an additional 600,593 shares during the period. 95.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Insider Buying and Selling at Hilton Worldwide
In other Hilton Worldwide news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 23,366 shares of Hilton Worldwide stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $251.66, for a total value of $5,880,287.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 22,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,746,152.78. The trade was a 50.58 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 40,653 shares of Hilton Worldwide stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $268.83, for a total value of $10,928,745.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 77,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,802,871.89. This represents a 34.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Several brokerages recently weighed in on HLT. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $270.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $219.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Mizuho reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $263.00 price objective (up previously from $243.00) on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $232.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Hilton Worldwide currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $250.61.
Get Our Latest Stock Report on HLT
Hilton Worldwide Stock Down 1.5 %
NYSE HLT opened at $247.35 on Monday. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 52 week low of $193.86 and a 52 week high of $275.22. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $255.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is $243.54. The firm has a market cap of $59.51 billion, a PE ratio of 40.22, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.29.
Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.09. Hilton Worldwide had a negative return on equity of 54.47% and a net margin of 13.74%. Research analysts expect that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7.89 EPS for the current year.
Hilton Worldwide declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Thursday, November 14th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 5.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.
Hilton Worldwide Dividend Announcement
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.24%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. Hilton Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.76%.
Hilton Worldwide Profile
Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc, a hospitality company, engages in managing, franchising, owning, and leasing hotels and resorts. It operates through two segments, Management and Franchise, and Ownership. The company engages in the hotel management and licensing of its brands. It operates luxury hotels under the Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts, LXR Hotels & Resorts, and Conrad Hotels & Resorts brand; lifestyle hotels under the Canopy by Hilton, Curio Collection by Hilton, Tapestry Collection by Hilton, Tempo by Hilton, and Motto by Hilton brand; full service hotels under the Signia by Hilton, Hilton Hotels & Resorts, and DoubleTree by Hilton brand; service hotels under the Hilton Garden Inn, Hampton by Hilton, and Tru by Hilton brand; all-suite hotels under the Embassy Suites by Hilton, Homewood Suites by Hilton, and Home2 Suites by Hilton brand; and economy hotel under the Spark by Hilton brand, as well as Hilton Grand Vacations.
See Also
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