Avestar Capital LLC Raises Holdings in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Avestar Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 3.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,700 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the period. Avestar Capital LLC’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $622,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. FMR LLC grew its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 2.1% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,215,391 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,585,148,000 after buying an additional 226,223 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 15.3% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 10,756,416 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,479,354,000 after purchasing an additional 1,429,537 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 36.9% in the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,754,647 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,037,464,000 after purchasing an additional 1,282,676 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in Hilton Worldwide by 33.2% during the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,234,809 shares of the company’s stock valued at $745,624,000 after purchasing an additional 806,029 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 7.7% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,817,770 shares of the company’s stock worth $614,841,000 after buying an additional 200,329 shares during the period. 95.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on HLT shares. Melius Research restated a “hold” rating on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Barclays lowered their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $244.00 to $243.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Evercore ISI increased their target price 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. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $232.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $265.00 to $256.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $228.71.

Hilton Worldwide Stock Performance

NYSE HLT opened at $252.92 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $238.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $221.25. The stock has a market cap of $61.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.27, a PEG ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 1.30. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $165.25 and a twelve month high of $255.86.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $1.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.85 by $0.07. Hilton Worldwide had a negative return on equity of 60.85% and a net margin of 10.70%. The firm had revenue of $2.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.90 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.67 earnings per share. Hilton Worldwide’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hilton Worldwide Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.24%. Hilton Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio is 12.88%.

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

Insider Transactions at Hilton Worldwide

In related news, insider Laura Fuentes sold 4,919 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.00, for a total value of $1,067,423.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 15,949 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,460,933. This represents a 23.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 14,357 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the insider now owns 22,833 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,382,423.09. This trade represents a 38.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Hilton Worldwide Company 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.