Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) Position Raised by Harbor Capital Advisors Inc.

Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 2.5% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 8,655 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 212 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $2,139,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of HLT. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,029 shares of the company’s stock worth $468,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV increased its position in Hilton Worldwide by 4.1% during the third quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 1,169 shares of the company’s stock worth $269,000 after buying an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Graypoint LLC raised its holdings in Hilton Worldwide by 2.6% during the third quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 1,869 shares of the company’s stock valued at $431,000 after buying an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Meadow Creek Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 4.2% in the third quarter. Meadow Creek Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,184 shares of the company’s stock worth $273,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 14.8% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 372 shares of the company’s stock worth $92,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. 95.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hilton Worldwide Stock Performance

Shares of HLT opened at $240.89 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $58.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.69, a PEG ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 1.30. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $249.22 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $231.15. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $180.62 and a 52-week high of $259.01.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $1.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by $0.07. Hilton Worldwide had a negative return on equity of 60.85% and a net margin of 10.70%. The business had revenue of $2.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.90 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.67 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. Hilton Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio is currently 12.88%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 23,366 shares of Hilton Worldwide stock in a transaction 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,746,152.78. This trade represents a 50.58 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Barclays boosted their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $243.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Melius cut shares of Hilton Worldwide from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $219.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $277.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $243.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $238.24.

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.