Empirical Finance LLC Has $435,000 Stock Position in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Empirical Finance LLC lessened its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,888 shares of the company’s stock after selling 66 shares during the quarter. Empirical Finance LLC’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $435,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in HLT. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. EdgeRock Capital LLC bought a new position in Hilton Worldwide in the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Hilton Worldwide during the 3rd quarter worth $38,000. NewSquare Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the 2nd quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Family Firm Inc. bought a new stake in Hilton Worldwide in the second quarter valued at about $38,000. Institutional investors own 95.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Hilton Worldwide

In other 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 15,949 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,460,933. This trade represents a 23.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 14,357 shares of Hilton Worldwide stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $235.73, for a total value of $3,384,375.61. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 22,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,382,423.09. This represents 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 currently owned by company insiders.

Hilton Worldwide Stock Performance

NYSE:HLT opened at $248.41 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $233.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $218.76. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $164.93 and a 52-week high of $255.86. The company has a market cap of $60.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.31, a P/E/G ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 1.30.

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

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

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. 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 report on Thursday, October 24th. Macquarie boosted their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $205.00 to $208.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Melius Research reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Mizuho raised 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 investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target 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.