Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) Price Target Raised to $277.00

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) had its price target upped by Jefferies Financial Group from $237.00 to $277.00 in a research report report published on Thursday,Benzinga reports. Jefferies Financial Group currently has a hold rating on the stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on HLT. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $243.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Melius Research reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a report on Monday, October 21st. TD Cowen dropped 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. Melius cut Hilton Worldwide from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI increased 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. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hilton Worldwide currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $238.24.

Hilton Worldwide Price Performance

Shares of HLT stock opened at $246.52 on Thursday. Hilton Worldwide has a one year low of $178.23 and a one year high of $259.01. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $248.70 and its 200-day moving average price is $230.14. The company has a market capitalization of $60.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.90, a PEG ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 1.30.

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

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. Hilton Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio is currently 12.88%.

Hilton Worldwide announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan 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 plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hilton Worldwide news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 14,357 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $235.73, for a total value of $3,384,375.61. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 22,833 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,382,423.09. This represents a 38.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Hilton Worldwide

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 1,429,537 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in 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 worth $1,037,464,000 after buying an additional 1,282,676 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its holdings in Hilton Worldwide by 33.2% during the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,234,809 shares of the company’s stock worth $745,624,000 after buying an additional 806,029 shares during the period. Stockbridge Partners LLC increased its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 600,593 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 23,730.1% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 479,223 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,104,610,000 after acquiring an additional 477,212 shares in the last quarter. 95.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.