Wells Fargo & Company Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) Stock

Key Points

• Wells Fargo raised Hilton Worldwide’s price target from $382 to $383 and maintained an “overweight” rating, implying approximately 11% upside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment remains favorable, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average target price of $355.13; recent updates included higher targets from Morgan Stanley and Barclays.
• Hilton shares traded near $345, while the company reported quarterly EPS of $2.29, slightly beating estimates, and revenue growth of 6.5% year over year.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT - Get Free Report) had its price objective lifted by equities researchers at Wells Fargo & Company from $382.00 to $383.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an "overweight" rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company's price target points to a potential upside of 11.00% from the company's previous close.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on the company. Wolfe Research began coverage on Hilton Worldwide in a research note on Wednesday, September 2nd. They issued a "peer perform" rating for the company. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $332.00 to $336.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, October 12th. Barclays raised their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $368.00 to $384.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday. CICC Research began coverage on Hilton Worldwide in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. They set an "outperform" rating for the company. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $312.00 to $316.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $355.13.

Hilton Worldwide Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE HLT traded down $0.07 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $345.05. The company's stock had a trading volume of 247,869 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,871,156. Hilton Worldwide has a 1-year low of $253.54 and a 1-year high of $358.00. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $318.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $324.81. The firm has a market cap of $77.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.62, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.10.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The company reported $2.29 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.27 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $1.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.32 billion. Hilton Worldwide had a net margin of 12.69% and a negative return on equity of 35.24%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.20 EPS. Hilton Worldwide has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 2.280-2.340 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 8.890-9.010 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Hilton Worldwide will post 9.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Hilton Worldwide

In other news, insider Laura Fuentes sold 7,289 shares of Hilton Worldwide stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $309.81, for a total transaction of $2,258,205.09. Following the sale, the insider owned 33,458 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,365,622.98. The trade was a 17.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Chris Carr sold 439 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.34, for a total value of $136,239.26. Following the transaction, the director owned 8,252 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,560,925.68. This represents a 5.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 2.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Hilton Worldwide

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HLT. Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new stake in Hilton Worldwide during the second quarter valued at about $10,140,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the second quarter worth about $1,909,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 2.4% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 200,598 shares of the company's stock worth $66,290,000 after acquiring an additional 4,700 shares in the last quarter. Nykredit A S purchased a new position in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the second quarter worth approximately $41,279,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,733,669,000. Institutional investors own 95.90% of the company's stock.

About Hilton Worldwide

Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc is a global hospitality company that develops, owns, manages, franchises and licenses hotels, resorts and other lodging properties. Its portfolio includes brands such as Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts, Conrad Hotels & Resorts, Hilton Hotels & Resorts, DoubleTree by Hilton, Embassy Suites, Hampton by Hilton, Hilton Garden Inn, Homewood Suites, Home2 Suites and Tru by Hilton.

The company provides accommodations and related services for business and leisure travelers, including guest rooms, meeting and event facilities, food and beverage operations, resort amenities and loyalty program benefits through Hilton Honors.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.