Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) Shares Bought by Certuity LLC

Certuity LLC grew its position in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 5.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,301 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the quarter. Certuity LLC’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $322,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in HLT. Portfolio Design Labs LLC increased its position in Hilton Worldwide by 37.3% during the 4th quarter. Portfolio Design Labs LLC now owns 8,158 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,016,000 after buying an additional 2,216 shares in the last quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 8.7% during the fourth quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,337 shares of the company’s stock worth $330,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 7.0% in the 4th quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 3,990 shares of the company’s stock valued at $986,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares during the last quarter. Canvas Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Hilton Worldwide in the 4th quarter worth approximately $202,000. Finally, Angeles Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Hilton Worldwide by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,422 shares of the company’s stock worth $351,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.90% of the company’s stock.

Hilton Worldwide Stock Performance

Shares of Hilton Worldwide stock opened at $273.47 on Thursday. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $186.83 and a fifty-two week high of $274.53. The company has a market cap of $66.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.29. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $251.33 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $236.86.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 57.01% and a net margin of 13.74%. Equities research analysts forecast that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7.76 EPS for the current year.

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

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

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on HLT. Mizuho reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $263.00 price target (up previously from $243.00) on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Raymond James raised their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $250.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $219.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Melius cut Hilton Worldwide from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $235.00 to $236.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $246.61.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hilton Worldwide news, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 40,653 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 represents a 34.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 23,366 shares of Hilton Worldwide stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 22,833 shares in the company, valued at $5,746,152.78. This represents a 50.58 % 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 company insiders.

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.