New York Life Investment Management LLC Lowers Holdings in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

New York Life Investment Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 2.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 36,261 shares of the company’s stock after selling 745 shares during the period. New York Life Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $8,962,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of HLT. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide during the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the 3rd quarter worth $38,000. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its holdings in Hilton Worldwide by 2,400.0% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 175 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Friedenthal Financial purchased a new stake in Hilton Worldwide during the fourth quarter valued at about $49,000. 95.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hilton Worldwide Stock Down 0.4 %

HLT stock opened at $258.95 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $62.30 billion, a PE ratio of 42.11, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.29. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $254.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $241.12. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $193.86 and a 52-week high of $275.22.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.09. Hilton Worldwide had a negative return on equity of 54.47% and a net margin of 13.74%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7.89 EPS for the current year.

Hilton Worldwide Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. Hilton Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.76%.

Hilton Worldwide announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Thursday, November 14th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 5.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on HLT shares. Raymond James lifted their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $250.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $232.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $270.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $219.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Mizuho reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $263.00 price target (up from $243.00) on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $248.56.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 40,653 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $268.83, for a total transaction of $10,928,745.99. Following the sale, the insider now owns 77,383 shares in the company, valued at $20,802,871.89. This represents a 34.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction 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 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 owns 22,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,746,152.78. The trade was 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 corporate insiders.

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.