South Street Advisors LLC Reduces Position in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

South Street Advisors LLC trimmed its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 3.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 94,054 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,008 shares during the period. Hilton Worldwide makes up 3.3% of South Street Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. South Street Advisors LLC’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $21,679,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in HLT. Natixis Advisors LLC increased its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 7.7% during the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 262,357 shares of the company’s stock valued at $60,473,000 after acquiring an additional 18,649 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 4.8% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 3,722 shares of the company’s stock worth $858,000 after buying an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 2.1% in the third quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,029 shares of the company’s stock valued at $468,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. First Business Financial Services Inc. raised its position in Hilton Worldwide by 6.5% in the third quarter. First Business Financial Services Inc. now owns 6,831 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,575,000 after purchasing an additional 416 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 7.1% during the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 36,442 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,400,000 after purchasing an additional 2,403 shares during the period. 95.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hilton Worldwide Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:HLT traded down $1.48 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $248.41. The company had a trading volume of 1,851,700 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,560,229. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $164.93 and a 12 month high of $255.86. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $233.57 and a 200 day simple moving average of $218.47. The stock has a market cap of $60.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.31, a PEG ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 1.30.

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

Hilton Worldwide declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, November 14th that permits the company to repurchase $3.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 5.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hilton Worldwide news, insider Laura Fuentes sold 4,919 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $217.00, for a total value of $1,067,423.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 15,949 shares in the company, valued at $3,460,933. This trade represents a 23.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 14,357 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 22,833 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,382,423.09. The trade was a 38.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HLT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Bank of America increased their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $230.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $185.00 to $181.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $208.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays cut their price target 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, Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $235.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $228.71.

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.