Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) Shares Purchased by Empowered Funds LLC

Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,722 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 172 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $858,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 15.3% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 10,756,416 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,479,354,000 after acquiring an additional 1,429,537 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 36.9% during the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,754,647 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,037,464,000 after buying an additional 1,282,676 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 23,730.1% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 479,223 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,104,610,000 after buying an additional 477,212 shares during the last quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the second quarter worth about $98,607,000. Finally, Fiera Capital Corp boosted its position in Hilton Worldwide by 6,417.6% during the second quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 442,869 shares of the company’s stock worth $96,634,000 after acquiring an additional 436,074 shares during the last quarter. 95.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hilton Worldwide Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE HLT opened at $252.93 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $237.24 and its 200-day simple moving average is $220.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $61.66 billion, a PE ratio of 54.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 1.30. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $165.25 and a fifty-two week high of $255.86.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $1.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.85 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $2.87 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.90 billion. Hilton Worldwide had a net margin of 10.70% and a negative return on equity of 60.85%. The company’s revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.67 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Hilton Worldwide Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.24%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. Hilton Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.88%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Laura Fuentes sold 4,919 shares of Hilton Worldwide stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.00, for a total value of $1,067,423.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 15,949 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,460,933. The trade was a 23.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 14,357 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.73, for a total transaction of $3,384,375.61. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 22,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,382,423.09. This trade represents a 38.60 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on HLT shares. Melius Research reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $232.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $235.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $244.00 to $243.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $208.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $228.71.

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.