Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD Decreases Position in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lessened its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT - Free Report) by 13.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,909,318 shares of the company's stock after selling 596,420 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD owned 1.60% of Hilton Worldwide worth $966,229,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in Hilton Worldwide during the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Hopwood Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the fourth quarter valued at $41,000. 95.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Hilton Worldwide

In related news, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 40,653 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.83, for a total transaction of $10,928,745.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 77,383 shares in the company, valued at $20,802,871.89. This represents a 34.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 2.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on HLT. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $277.00 to $228.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Susquehanna upped their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $247.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Raymond James upped their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $250.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Mizuho reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $263.00 price objective (up from $243.00) on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $251.00 to $241.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $243.75.

Hilton Worldwide Price Performance

NYSE HLT traded up $4.19 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $225.79. 1,367,898 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,723,678. The company has a market cap of $54.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.19. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $229.90 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $242.71. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $194.93 and a 1 year high of $275.22.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.11. Hilton Worldwide had a net margin of 13.74% and a negative return on equity of 54.47%. The company had revenue of $2.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.73 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.53 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. Hilton Worldwide's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.76%.

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.