Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) Shares Bought by Ieq Capital LLC

Ieq Capital LLC raised its position in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 329.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 26,316 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 20,182 shares during the quarter. Ieq Capital LLC’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $6,504,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,134 shares of the company’s stock valued at $528,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 0.5% in the third quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 8,443 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,946,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. Graypoint LLC increased its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 2.6% in the third quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 1,869 shares of the company’s stock valued at $431,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the period. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 14.8% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 372 shares of the company’s stock valued at $92,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on HLT. Macquarie raised their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $248.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $235.00 to $236.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $247.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Mizuho reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $263.00 target price (up from $243.00) on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. 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 report on Monday, February 10th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $246.61.

Hilton Worldwide Price Performance

HLT stock opened at $267.90 on Friday. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $193.86 and a 52-week high of $275.22. The company has a 50-day moving average of $253.27 and a two-hundred day moving average of $239.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $64.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.29.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.09. Hilton Worldwide had a net margin of 13.74% and a negative return on equity of 54.47%. Equities analysts expect that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hilton Worldwide Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be paid a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.22%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. Hilton Worldwide’s payout ratio is presently 9.76%.

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

Insider Activity at Hilton Worldwide

In related news, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 40,653 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $268.83, for a total value of $10,928,745.99. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 77,383 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,802,871.89. This trade represents a 34.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 23,366 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the insider now 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.