Westpac Banking Corp Purchases 20,570 Shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. $HLT

Westpac Banking Corp increased its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 1,381.5% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 22,059 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 20,570 shares during the period. Westpac Banking Corp’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $5,723,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Hilton Worldwide by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,463,196 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,606,172,000 after buying an additional 151,984 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 12.6% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 10,100,718 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,620,531,000 after acquiring an additional 1,132,880 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in Hilton Worldwide by 0.9% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,595,709 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,555,721,000 after purchasing an additional 86,689 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 2.8% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,281,842 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,666,246,000 after purchasing an additional 172,121 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 4.0% in the 2nd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,442,662 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,449,599,000 after purchasing an additional 208,708 shares during the period. 95.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Truist Financial raised their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $253.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $338.00 to $373.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Argus increased their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $350.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $312.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $266.00 to $321.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Hilton Worldwide currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $326.32.

Insider Transactions at Hilton Worldwide

In other Hilton Worldwide news, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 114,289 shares of Hilton Worldwide stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $317.47, for a total transaction of $36,283,328.83. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 36,445 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,570,194.15. The trade was a 75.82% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 2.60% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Hilton Worldwide

Here are the key news stories impacting Hilton Worldwide this week:

• Positive Sentiment: UBS raised its price target to $360 and maintained a Buy rating—this is the largest upward reassessment among brokers and supports upside to the stock. UBS price-target raise to $360
• Positive Sentiment: Sanford C. Bernstein increased its price target to $322, a smaller but still constructive revision that reinforces analyst optimism. Bernstein raises price target to $322
• Positive Sentiment: Short interest fell ~13.1% in February (to ~5.08M shares), reducing potential short‑squeeze risk and removing some downward pressure on the stock—shorts now represent about 2.3% of float with ~2.0 days to cover.
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks raised a few quarterly estimates (notably Q1 2026 to $1.91 and parts of 2027 such as Q2/Q3 2027), which is a modest positive for near‑term cadence but mixed within a broader set of cuts.
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks cut full‑year FY2026 EPS guidance (to $8.77 from $9.04) and trimmed several 2026/2027 quarter estimates (including Q3 2026 and Q4 2026), signaling downward revision risk to near‑term profitability expectations.
• Negative Sentiment: Seeking Alpha published a valuation critique arguing Hilton’s rally has overstayed its one‑year high, which may prompt profit‑taking from investors who view the shares as richly valued. Seeking Alpha: Valuation critique

Hilton Worldwide Stock Performance

Shares of HLT opened at $313.51 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $301.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $281.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $71.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.23, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 1.13. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 52 week low of $196.04 and a 52 week high of $333.86.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $2.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.02 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $1.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.99 billion. Hilton Worldwide had a negative return on equity of 40.24% and a net margin of 12.10%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.76 earnings per share. Hilton Worldwide has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.490-8.610 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.910-1.970 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7.89 EPS for the current year.

Hilton Worldwide Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, February 27th will be issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 27th. Hilton Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.80%.

Hilton Worldwide Profile

Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc is a global hospitality company that develops, owns, manages and franchises a broad portfolio of hotels and resorts. Its business spans full-service luxury and lifestyle properties, select- and focused-service hotels, and extended-stay accommodations. The company generates revenue through management and franchise fees, owned and leased real estate, and guest services, and supports customer retention and direct bookings through its Hilton Honors guest loyalty program.

Hilton’s brand portfolio includes internationally recognized names across the lodging spectrum, from luxury and upper-upscale brands to midscale and extended-stay offerings.