Rothschild Investment LLC Sells 1,028 Shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Rothschild Investment LLC trimmed its holdings in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 2.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 42,639 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,028 shares during the period. Rothschild Investment LLC’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $10,539,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. FMR LLC grew its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 2.1% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,215,391 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,585,148,000 after acquiring an additional 226,223 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 15.3% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 10,756,416 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,479,354,000 after acquiring an additional 1,429,537 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 3.1% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,090,950 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,012,069,000 after acquiring an additional 121,900 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC grew its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,399,270 shares of the company’s stock valued at $840,164,000 after acquiring an additional 164,461 shares during the period. Finally, Stockbridge Partners LLC grew its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 63.6% in the third 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. 95.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hilton Worldwide Stock Performance

Shares of HLT stock opened at $259.31 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $253.40 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $240.12. The company has a market cap of $62.39 billion, a PE ratio of 42.16, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.29. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $193.86 and a fifty-two week high of $275.22.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, equities analysts predict that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hilton Worldwide announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, November 14th that permits the company to buyback $3.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 5.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Hilton Worldwide Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.23%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. Hilton Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio is presently 9.76%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hilton Worldwide

In related news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 23,366 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $251.66, for a total transaction of $5,880,287.56. Following the sale, the insider now owns 22,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,746,152.78. This trade represents a 50.58 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 40,653 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $20,802,871.89. This trade represents a 34.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HLT has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $232.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Mizuho reaffirmed 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. Raymond James upped their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $250.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Macquarie upped their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $248.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Twelve equities research 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 an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $246.61.

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.