Natixis Advisors LLC Boosts Stake in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Natixis Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 7.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 262,357 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 18,649 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC owned 0.11% of Hilton Worldwide worth $60,473,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. EdgeRock Capital LLC acquired a new position in Hilton Worldwide during the second quarter worth $33,000. NewSquare Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Hilton Worldwide in the 2nd quarter valued at $37,000. Family Firm Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the 2nd quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hilton Worldwide during the 3rd quarter worth $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HLT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $235.00 to $236.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Melius lowered shares of Hilton Worldwide from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Melius Research reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on 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. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Hilton Worldwide has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $228.71.

Insider Activity at Hilton Worldwide

In other Hilton Worldwide news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 14,357 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the insider now owns 22,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,382,423.09. This trade represents a 38.60 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Laura Fuentes sold 4,919 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $217.00, for a total value of $1,067,423.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 15,949 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,460,933. This represents a 23.57 % 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 company insiders.

Hilton Worldwide Price Performance

NYSE HLT opened at $248.41 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $60.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.31, a P/E/G ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 1.30. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $233.57 and a two-hundred day moving average of $218.62. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $164.93 and a 1-year high of $255.86.

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

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

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

Hilton Worldwide announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Thursday, November 14th that permits the company to repurchase $3.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 5.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.