Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) Shares Sold by ING Groep NV

Key Points

• ING Groep NV reduced its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 47.4% during the first quarter, now holding 26,032 shares worth approximately $5.9 million.
• Hilton recently reported quarterly earnings of $2.20 per share, exceeding analysts' expectations and showing a 6.3% year-over-year revenue increase to $3.14 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share with an annualized yield of 0.2%, set to be paid on September 30th.

ING Groep NV lowered its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT - Free Report) by 47.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 26,032 shares of the company's stock after selling 23,414 shares during the quarter. ING Groep NV's holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $5,924,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in HLT. Allianz SE increased its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 35.7% in the first quarter. Allianz SE now owns 5,346 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,216,000 after purchasing an additional 1,406 shares during the last quarter. Argent Trust Co increased its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 6.8% in the first quarter. Argent Trust Co now owns 7,486 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,703,000 after purchasing an additional 477 shares during the last quarter. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG acquired a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the first quarter valued at approximately $11,192,000. Malaga Cove Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the first quarter valued at approximately $316,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 105.0% in the first quarter. R Squared Ltd now owns 6,950 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,581,000 after purchasing an additional 3,560 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.90% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on HLT. Macquarie increased their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $240.00 to $258.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Barclays lowered their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $296.00 to $291.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Dbs Bank upgraded Hilton Worldwide from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $251.00 to $241.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Bank of America increased their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $259.19.

Hilton Worldwide Trading Up 0.6%

NYSE:HLT traded up $1.55 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $262.47. The company had a trading volume of 1,957,942 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,888,753. The firm has a market capitalization of $61.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.32, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.26. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $262.31 and its 200-day simple moving average is $248.16. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 12-month low of $196.04 and a 12-month high of $279.46.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The company reported $2.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $3.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.09 billion. Hilton Worldwide had a negative return on equity of 46.13% and a net margin of 13.84%. Hilton Worldwide's revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.91 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7.89 EPS for the current year.

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

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

Hilton Worldwide Company 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.