Franklin Resources Inc. Boosts Position in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 7.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,411,500 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 320,550 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 1.81% of Hilton Worldwide worth $1,090,346,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG increased its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 152.7% during the fourth quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG now owns 52,180 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,901,000 after acquiring an additional 31,527 shares during the last quarter. Summit Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the 4th quarter valued at $229,000. AIA Group Ltd lifted its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 20,465 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,058,000 after acquiring an additional 263 shares in the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Hilton Worldwide by 19.9% during the 4th quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 24,621 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,085,000 after acquiring an additional 4,080 shares during the period. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC grew its position in Hilton Worldwide by 22.4% in the 4th quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 30,127 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,446,000 after acquiring an additional 5,523 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.90% of the company’s stock.

Hilton Worldwide Price Performance

Hilton Worldwide stock opened at $225.49 on Monday. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $193.86 and a 1-year high of $275.22. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $250.94 and its 200 day moving average price is $245.15. The company has a market cap of $54.03 billion, a PE ratio of 36.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.29.

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

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.27%. Hilton Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.76%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HLT has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $232.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Raymond James increased their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $250.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $277.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Susquehanna increased their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $247.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $265.00 to $274.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hilton Worldwide presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $254.53.

Insider Transactions at Hilton Worldwide

In other Hilton Worldwide news, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 40,653 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.83, for a total transaction of $10,928,745.99. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 77,383 shares in the company, valued at $20,802,871.89. The trade was a 34.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

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.