Public Sector Pension Investment Board Sells 117,940 Shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Public Sector Pension Investment Board lowered its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 28.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 302,194 shares of the company’s stock after selling 117,940 shares during the quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $69,656,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Hilton Worldwide by 23.7% during the first quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 1,405 shares of the company’s stock worth $300,000 after purchasing an additional 269 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its position in Hilton Worldwide by 45.4% during the first quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 18,392 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,928,000 after purchasing an additional 5,740 shares during the period. Comerica Bank boosted its position in Hilton Worldwide by 3.7% during the first quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 87,353 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,633,000 after purchasing an additional 3,077 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC boosted its position in Hilton Worldwide by 158.0% during the first quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 6,400 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,365,000 after purchasing an additional 3,919 shares during the period. Finally, Atria Investments Inc boosted its position in Hilton Worldwide by 12.4% during the first quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 21,479 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,582,000 after purchasing an additional 2,364 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 95.90% of the company’s stock.

Hilton Worldwide Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HLT opened at $250.42 on Thursday. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a one year low of $165.25 and a one year high of $255.86. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $239.19 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $221.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $61.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.74, a PEG ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 1.30.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $1.92 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by $0.07. Hilton Worldwide had a net margin of 10.70% and a negative return on equity of 60.85%. The business had revenue of $2.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.90 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.67 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect 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 issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.24%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. Hilton Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio is 12.88%.

Hilton Worldwide declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, November 14th that permits the company to buyback $3.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 5.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on HLT. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $235.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Melius Research reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a report on Monday, October 21st. Melius downgraded shares of Hilton Worldwide from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $245.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price target 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. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $228.71.

Insider Activity at Hilton Worldwide

In related news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 14,357 shares of Hilton Worldwide 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 $5,382,423.09. The trade was a 38.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Laura Fuentes sold 4,919 shares of Hilton Worldwide 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 approximately $3,460,933. This trade represents a 23.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by company 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.