Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) Short Interest Down 7.5% in December

Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLTGet Free Report) saw a large drop in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 4,210,000 shares, a drop of 7.5% from the November 30th total of 4,550,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,380,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.1 days. Approximately 1.8% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 14,357 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.73, for a total value of $3,384,375.61. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 22,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,382,423.09. This represents a 38.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hilton Worldwide

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,029 shares of the company’s stock valued at $468,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 8,443 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,946,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV boosted its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 1,169 shares of the company’s stock worth $269,000 after buying an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Graypoint LLC increased its position in Hilton Worldwide by 2.6% during the third quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 1,869 shares of the company’s stock valued at $431,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meadow Creek Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Hilton Worldwide by 4.2% in the third quarter. Meadow Creek Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,184 shares of the company’s stock worth $273,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. 95.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on HLT. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. TD Cowen decreased their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $265.00 to $256.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Melius Research reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $243.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $232.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Hilton Worldwide currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $232.65.

Read Our Latest Report on Hilton Worldwide

Hilton Worldwide Price Performance

HLT traded down $1.04 on Wednesday, hitting $247.16. The company had a trading volume of 876,700 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,255,833. Hilton Worldwide has a 52-week low of $178.23 and a 52-week high of $259.01. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $248.02 and a 200-day simple moving average of $229.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $60.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.04, a P/E/G ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 1.30.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLTGet Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $1.92 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.85 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $2.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.90 billion. Hilton Worldwide had a net margin of 10.70% and a negative return on equity of 60.85%. Hilton Worldwide’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.67 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Hilton Worldwide will post 7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. Hilton Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.88%.

Hilton Worldwide declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Thursday, November 14th that permits the company to repurchase $3.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 5.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

About Hilton Worldwide

(Get Free Report)

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.

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