Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) Shares Acquired by Raymond James Trust N.A.

Raymond James Trust N.A. boosted its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 3,925 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 223 shares during the quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A.’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $905,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. PGGM Investments lifted its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 337.6% in the second quarter. PGGM Investments now owns 14,378 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,137,000 after purchasing an additional 11,092 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 201.4% in the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 181,576 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,853,000 after acquiring an additional 121,322 shares in the last quarter. Chartwell Investment Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 35.8% in the third quarter. Chartwell Investment Partners LLC now owns 28,756 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,628,000 after acquiring an additional 7,583 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates grew its holdings in Hilton Worldwide by 10.9% during the 2nd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 321,656 shares of the company’s stock valued at $70,185,000 after purchasing an additional 31,548 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Hilton Worldwide by 271.5% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 6,259 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,335,000 after purchasing an additional 4,574 shares in the last quarter. 95.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on HLT shares. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $230.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $208.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $185.00 to $181.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. TD Cowen decreased their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $265.00 to $256.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $245.00 target price for the company. Eleven 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.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $228.71.

Hilton Worldwide Price Performance

Shares of Hilton Worldwide stock opened at $253.00 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $61.68 billion, a PE ratio of 54.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 1.30. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $237.24 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $220.58. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $165.25 and a 52-week high of $255.86.

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. The firm had revenue of $2.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.90 billion. Hilton Worldwide had a net margin of 10.70% and a negative return on equity of 60.85%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.67 EPS. Analysts predict that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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 paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date 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%.

Hilton Worldwide declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, November 14th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 5.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

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

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.