Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Grows Stock Position in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 18.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 14,906 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,283 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $3,684,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of HLT. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Groupama Asset Managment raised its holdings in Hilton Worldwide by 37.8% during the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 15,025 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 4,118 shares during the last quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in Hilton Worldwide during the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Hilton Worldwide in the 3rd quarter worth $38,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC grew its holdings in Hilton Worldwide by 2,400.0% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 175 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. 95.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Hilton Worldwide Stock Performance

Shares of HLT opened at $259.81 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $254.01 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $241.00. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $193.86 and a fifty-two week high of $275.22. The stock has a market cap of $62.51 billion, a PE ratio of 42.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.29.

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

Hilton Worldwide declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, November 14th that allows the company to buyback $3.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 5.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Hilton Worldwide Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend 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

In related news, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 40,653 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 77,383 shares in the company, valued at $20,802,871.89. The trade was a 34.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 23,366 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $251.66, for a total value of $5,880,287.56. Following the sale, the insider now owns 22,833 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,746,152.78. This represents 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 company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on HLT. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $270.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Macquarie upped their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $248.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $232.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $247.00 to $277.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $247.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $248.56.

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.