Kestra Investment Management LLC Acquires Shares of 202 Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 202 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $50,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 15.3% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 10,756,416 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,479,354,000 after buying an additional 1,429,537 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC raised its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 33.2% in the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,234,809 shares of the company’s stock valued at $745,624,000 after buying an additional 806,029 shares in the last quarter. Stockbridge Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 63.6% in the 3rd quarter. Stockbridge Partners LLC now owns 1,544,399 shares of the company’s stock valued at $355,984,000 after buying an additional 600,593 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,215,391 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,585,148,000 after buying an additional 226,223 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 179.6% in the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 300,574 shares of the company’s stock valued at $69,282,000 after buying an additional 193,063 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.90% of the company’s stock.

Hilton Worldwide Price Performance

HLT opened at $259.31 on Friday. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $193.86 and a fifty-two week high of $275.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $62.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.16, a PEG ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.29. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $253.40 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $239.64.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.09. Hilton Worldwide had a net margin of 13.74% and a negative return on equity of 54.47%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7.89 EPS for the current 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 dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.23%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. Hilton Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio is presently 9.76%.

Hilton Worldwide announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Thursday, November 14th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 5.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HLT has been the subject of several analyst reports. Macquarie boosted their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $248.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Raymond James upped their price objective 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. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $219.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Mizuho reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $263.00 price objective (up from $243.00) on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hilton Worldwide currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $246.61.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hilton Worldwide news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 23,366 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $5,746,152.78. This represents a 50.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, 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 transaction of $10,928,745.99. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 77,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,802,871.89. This represents a 34.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.50% of the stock is owned by 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.