Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) Releases Q2 Earnings Guidance

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) updated its second quarter earnings guidance on Wednesday. The company provided earnings per share (EPS) guidance of $1.80 to $1.86 for the period, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.87. Hilton Worldwide also updated its FY 2024 guidance to 6.890-7.030 EPS.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $204.00 to $216.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $190.00 to $237.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $215.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $196.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $157.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 2nd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $201.78.

Hilton Worldwide Price Performance

HLT opened at $197.19 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $205.31 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $184.17. Hilton Worldwide has a 1-year low of $134.43 and a 1-year high of $215.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.25.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The company reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.57 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $2.61 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.61 billion. Hilton Worldwide had a net margin of 11.15% and a negative return on equity of 94.46%. The business’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.59 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Hilton Worldwide will post 7.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hilton Worldwide Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 22nd. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.30%. Hilton Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.86%.

Insider Transactions at Hilton Worldwide

In other news, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 21,489 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.68, for a total transaction of $4,204,967.52. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 2,536,478 shares in the company, valued at approximately $496,338,015.04. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

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.