Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Acquires 39,786 Shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 2.6% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,597,137 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 39,786 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $394,748,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,134 shares of the company’s stock worth $528,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the period. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 2.1% in the third quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,029 shares of the company’s stock worth $468,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Hilton Worldwide by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,232 shares of the company’s stock worth $799,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Graypoint LLC increased its position in Hilton Worldwide by 2.6% during the 3rd 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 raised its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 14.8% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 372 shares of the company’s stock valued at $92,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hilton Worldwide news, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 40,653 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.83, for a total value of $10,928,745.99. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 77,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,802,871.89. This trade represents a 34.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 23,366 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $251.66, for a total value of $5,880,287.56. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 22,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,746,152.78. The trade was a 50.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hilton Worldwide Stock Performance

NYSE:HLT opened at $259.35 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $255.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $242.86. The firm has a market cap of $62.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.17, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.29. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a one year low of $193.86 and a one year high of $275.22.

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

Hilton Worldwide announced that its board has approved 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 shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

The company 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 0.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. Hilton Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.76%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HLT has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $247.00 to $277.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $232.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $265.00 to $274.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Macquarie raised their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $248.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $219.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $250.61.

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.