Highland Capital Management LLC Boosts Stake in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Highland Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 0.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 31,363 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 240 shares during the quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $5,711,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in HLT. Cetera Advisor Networks LLC grew its position in Hilton Worldwide by 7.9% during the first quarter. Cetera Advisor Networks LLC now owns 1,473 shares of the company’s stock worth $224,000 after buying an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its position in Hilton Worldwide by 8.0% during the first quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 1,499 shares of the company’s stock worth $227,000 after buying an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. grew its position in Hilton Worldwide by 22.9% during the first quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 3,422 shares of the company’s stock worth $519,000 after buying an additional 637 shares in the last quarter. Synovus Financial Corp grew its position in Hilton Worldwide by 8.6% during the first quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 6,148 shares of the company’s stock worth $932,000 after buying an additional 487 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new stake in Hilton Worldwide during the first quarter worth about $91,000. 95.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hilton Worldwide news, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 21,489 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $195.68, for a total transaction of $4,204,967.52. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 2,536,478 shares in the company, valued at approximately $496,338,015.04. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 2.40% of the company’s stock.

Hilton Worldwide Price Performance

HLT opened at $214.34 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $199.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $176.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.50, a PEG ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.25. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a one year low of $131.64 and a one year high of $215.14.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The company reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.57 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $2.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.61 billion. Hilton Worldwide had a negative return on equity of 94.46% and a net margin of 11.15%. Hilton Worldwide’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.59 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 23rd will be issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 22nd. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.28%. Hilton Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.86%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. UBS Group lifted their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $190.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $210.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. Mizuho assumed coverage on Hilton Worldwide in a research note on Tuesday. They set a “buy” rating and a $245.00 price target for the company. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $200.00 to $204.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $197.78.

Hilton Worldwide Company 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.