Czech National Bank Grows Holdings in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Czech National Bank raised its holdings in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 5.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 52,857 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 2,658 shares during the period. Czech National Bank’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $13,064,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in HLT. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 4.3% during the 2nd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,791 shares of the company’s stock valued at $609,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide during the second quarter worth approximately $425,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 9.6% during the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 427,466 shares of the company’s stock worth $93,273,000 after purchasing an additional 37,591 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in Hilton Worldwide by 36.9% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,754,647 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,037,464,000 after buying an additional 1,282,676 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in Hilton Worldwide by 12.6% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 691,015 shares of the company’s stock worth $150,768,000 after buying an additional 77,560 shares during the last quarter. 95.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hilton Worldwide Stock Up 0.4 %

HLT opened at $241.62 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $249.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $231.47. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $180.96 and a 52-week high of $259.01. The company has a market cap of $58.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.85, a P/E/G ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 1.30.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $1.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 firm had revenue of $2.87 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.90 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.67 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7 earnings per share for the current year.

Hilton Worldwide announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, November 14th that allows the company to buyback $3.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 5.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 23,366 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $251.66, for a total transaction 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $247.00 to $277.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $235.00 to $236.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Bank of America lifted their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $230.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $243.00 to $268.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hilton Worldwide currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $238.24.

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.