Portfolio Design Labs LLC Purchases 2,216 Shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Portfolio Design Labs LLC increased its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 37.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,158 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,216 shares during the period. Portfolio Design Labs LLC’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $2,016,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in Hilton Worldwide during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $765,000. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in Hilton Worldwide by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,090,950 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,012,069,000 after acquiring an additional 121,900 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Hilton Worldwide during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Fiduciary Alliance LLC bought a new stake in Hilton Worldwide during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,246,000. Finally, Dale Q Rice Investment Management Ltd purchased a new position in Hilton Worldwide in the 4th quarter worth approximately $593,000. Institutional investors own 95.90% of the company’s stock.

Hilton Worldwide Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of HLT opened at $269.06 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $65.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.75, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.29. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $250.97 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $236.48. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $186.83 and a twelve month high of $274.18.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.09. Hilton Worldwide had a net margin of 13.74% and a negative return on equity of 57.01%. Sell-side analysts expect that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hilton Worldwide declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Thursday, November 14th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 5.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.22%. Hilton Worldwide’s payout ratio is currently 9.76%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hilton Worldwide

In other Hilton Worldwide news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 23,366 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $5,746,152.78. This represents a 50.58 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 40,653 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.83, for a total transaction of $10,928,745.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 77,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,802,871.89. This trade 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.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on HLT. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $208.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target 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. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $230.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Mizuho reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $263.00 price target (up previously from $243.00) on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $235.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hilton Worldwide presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $246.61.

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.