Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) Stake Lifted by Natixis Advisors LLC

Natixis Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 7.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 280,697 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 18,340 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $69,377,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of HLT. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings 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 buying an additional 1,429,537 shares during the period. GSA Capital Partners LLP acquired a new position in Hilton Worldwide in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $226,000. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Hilton Worldwide by 50.9% during the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,940 shares of the company’s stock worth $678,000 after purchasing an additional 992 shares in the last quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC raised its position in Hilton Worldwide by 0.9% during the third quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 10,308 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,376,000 after buying an additional 88 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 7.1% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 36,442 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,400,000 after acquiring an additional 2,403 shares in the last quarter. 95.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 23,366 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The stock was 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 owns 22,833 shares in the company, valued at $5,746,152.78. The trade was a 50.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 40,653 shares of the company’s 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 transaction, the insider now owns 77,383 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,802,871.89. The trade was a 34.44 % 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.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on HLT shares. Susquehanna upped their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $247.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $232.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Macquarie raised their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $248.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $265.00 to $274.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $250.61.

Hilton Worldwide Price Performance

HLT opened at $229.61 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $55.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.34, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.29. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $253.37 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $243.83. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $193.86 and a fifty-two week high of $275.22.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hilton Worldwide Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.26%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. Hilton Worldwide’s payout ratio is 9.76%.

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.