Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 19,739 Shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Principal Financial Group Inc. cut its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT - Free Report) by 0.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 10,371,396 shares of the company's stock after selling 19,739 shares during the quarter. Hilton Worldwide makes up approximately 1.3% of Principal Financial Group Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 8th biggest holding. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 4.33% of Hilton Worldwide worth $2,360,012,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in Hilton Worldwide during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. ORG Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 78.7% during the first quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 168 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the period. Beacon Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 76.0% in the first quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 176 shares of the company's stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Hilton Worldwide in the fourth quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in Hilton Worldwide during the 4th quarter worth about $44,000. Institutional investors own 95.90% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Dbs Bank raised shares of Hilton Worldwide from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Evercore ISI cut their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $275.00 to $245.00 and set an "in-line" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Hilton Worldwide from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $228.00 to $296.00 in a research note on Monday, May 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on Hilton Worldwide in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $282.00 target price on the stock. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $235.00 price target (down from $296.00) on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a research report on Monday, April 14th. 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. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $249.06.

Hilton Worldwide Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of NYSE:HLT traded up $3.10 on Friday, hitting $273.21. 928,231 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,791,576. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $248.88 and its 200 day moving average price is $244.05. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $196.04 and a 1-year high of $275.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $64.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 1.25.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.11. Hilton Worldwide had a negative return on equity of 49.50% and a net margin of 13.90%. The business had revenue of $2.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.73 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.53 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 26th were paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a yield of 0.23%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 23rd. Hilton Worldwide's payout ratio is 9.46%.

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.