Hancock Whitney Corp Lowers Stake in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. $HLT

Key Points

• Hancock Whitney Corp reduced its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 15.7% in Q1, now owning 8,513 shares valued at approximately $1.94 million.
• Insider Christopher W. Silcock sold 11,905 shares of Hilton Worldwide, decreasing his position by 13.03% and retaining shares worth about $21.4 million after the sale.
• Hilton Worldwide announced a quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share set to be paid with a yield of 0.2%, while maintaining a dividend payout ratio of 9.22%.

Hancock Whitney Corp trimmed its holdings in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT - Free Report) by 15.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,513 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,583 shares during the quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp's holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $1,937,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Fiduciary Trust Co lifted its holdings in Hilton Worldwide by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Fiduciary Trust Co now owns 7,323 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,810,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Summit Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 4.3% in the 1st quarter. Summit Financial LLC now owns 968 shares of the company's stock valued at $220,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. Apollon Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,542 shares of the company's stock valued at $351,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. First Bank & Trust increased its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. First Bank & Trust now owns 10,439 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,375,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period. Finally, CoreCap Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Hilton Worldwide by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 890 shares of the company's stock worth $220,000 after buying an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. 95.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hilton Worldwide Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of Hilton Worldwide stock traded down $1.89 on Wednesday, reaching $273.08. The company's stock had a trading volume of 386,050 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,966,732. The company has a market capitalization of $64.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 1.21. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 52 week low of $196.04 and a 52 week high of $279.80. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $271.43 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $249.99.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The company reported $2.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.04 by $0.16. Hilton Worldwide had a negative return on equity of 46.13% and a net margin of 13.84%.The company had revenue of $3.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.09 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.91 earnings per share. Hilton Worldwide's quarterly revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Hilton Worldwide has set its Q3 2025 guidance at 1.980-2.040 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 7.830-8.000 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7.89 EPS for the current year.

Hilton Worldwide Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 29th will be paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 29th. Hilton Worldwide's payout ratio is presently 9.22%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Christopher W. Silcock sold 11,905 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $269.40, for a total value of $3,207,207.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 79,451 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,404,099.40. The trade was a 13.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 2.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on HLT shares. Dbs Bank raised Hilton Worldwide from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on Hilton Worldwide in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. They set an "overweight" rating and a $282.00 price objective for the company. Macquarie increased their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $240.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Raymond James Financial increased their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $296.00 to $291.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $264.40.

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.