Brokerages Set Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) Price Target at $228.71

Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) has received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the nineteen ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $228.71.

A number of brokerages have issued reports on HLT. Melius lowered shares of Hilton Worldwide from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $230.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Melius Research reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $232.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th.

Hilton Worldwide Stock Performance

NYSE:HLT opened at $249.11 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $234.25 and a two-hundred day moving average of $219.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $60.73 billion, a PE ratio of 53.46, a P/E/G ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 1.30. Hilton Worldwide has a fifty-two week low of $165.25 and a fifty-two week high of $255.86.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $1.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $2.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.90 billion. Hilton Worldwide had a net margin of 10.70% and a negative return on equity of 60.85%. Hilton Worldwide’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.67 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Hilton Worldwide will post 7 earnings per share for the current year.

Hilton Worldwide Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.24%. Hilton Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio is currently 12.88%.

Hilton Worldwide announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Thursday, November 14th that permits the company to buyback $3.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 5.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Hilton Worldwide

In related news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 14,357 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.73, for a total transaction of $3,384,375.61. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 22,833 shares in the company, valued at $5,382,423.09. This trade represents a 38.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Laura Fuentes sold 4,919 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $217.00, for a total transaction of $1,067,423.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 15,949 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,460,933. This represents a 23.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Hilton Worldwide

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 20.7% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 3,358 shares of the company’s stock valued at $716,000 after buying an additional 577 shares in the last quarter. Banco Santander S.A. grew its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 3.1% during the 1st quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 2,410 shares of the company’s stock worth $514,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. lifted its position in Hilton Worldwide by 40.9% during the first quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. now owns 2,175 shares of the company’s stock worth $464,000 after purchasing an additional 631 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 10.5% during the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 8,044,198 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,715,908,000 after buying an additional 761,104 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Hilton Worldwide by 204.0% in the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 22,496 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,799,000 after buying an additional 15,097 shares during the period. 95.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Hilton Worldwide

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.