Certuity LLC Boosts Stock Position in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Certuity LLC increased its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 5.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,301 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 64 shares during the quarter. Certuity LLC’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $322,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HLT. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in shares of Hilton Worldwide during the 3rd quarter worth $765,000. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in Hilton Worldwide by 3.1% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,090,950 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,012,069,000 after purchasing an additional 121,900 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Hilton Worldwide during the third quarter worth about $38,000. Fiduciary Alliance LLC acquired a new position in Hilton Worldwide in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,246,000. Finally, Dale Q Rice Investment Management Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $593,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hilton Worldwide

In other news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 23,366 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 22,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,746,152.78. This represents a 50.58 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 40,653 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.83, for a total value of $10,928,745.99. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 77,383 shares in the company, valued at $20,802,871.89. This trade represents a 34.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Hilton Worldwide Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE HLT opened at $273.47 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $66.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.47, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.29. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $251.33 and its 200-day simple moving average is $236.86. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 12-month low of $186.83 and a 12-month high of $274.53.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.09. Hilton Worldwide had a negative return on equity of 57.01% and a net margin of 13.74%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hilton Worldwide announced that its Board of Directors has approved 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 purchase up to 5.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders 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 yield of 0.22%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. Hilton Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.76%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $232.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Melius Research reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a report on Monday, October 21st. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $265.00 to $256.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Raymond James increased their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $250.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hilton Worldwide presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $246.61.

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.