Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) Position Boosted by Edgestream Partners L.P.

Edgestream Partners L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT - Free Report) by 39.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 42,151 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 11,905 shares during the period. Hilton Worldwide accounts for about 0.4% of Edgestream Partners L.P.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest holding. Edgestream Partners L.P.'s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $10,418,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in HLT. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Hilton Worldwide during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Groupama Asset Managment increased its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 37.8% in the third quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 15,025 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 4,118 shares during the last quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide during the 3rd quarter worth about $38,000. 95.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on HLT shares. Mizuho reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $263.00 price target (up from $243.00) on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $247.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $232.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Macquarie lifted their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $248.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $265.00 to $274.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $250.61.

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Insider Activity at Hilton Worldwide

In other news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 23,366 shares of Hilton Worldwide stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $251.66, for a total transaction of $5,880,287.56. Following the sale, the insider now owns 22,833 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,746,152.78. The trade was a 50.58 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 40,653 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $268.83, for a total value of $10,928,745.99. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 77,383 shares of the company's stock, valued at $20,802,871.89. This represents a 34.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hilton Worldwide Trading Down 2.6 %

Shares of HLT traded down $6.41 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $240.73. 1,093,224 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,504,065. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $193.86 and a 1 year high of $275.22. The company has a market cap of $57.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.29. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $255.04 and a 200 day moving average price of $243.54.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.09. Hilton Worldwide had a net margin of 13.74% and a negative return on equity of 54.47%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7.89 EPS for the current year.

Hilton Worldwide Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.25%. Hilton Worldwide's payout ratio is presently 9.76%.

Hilton Worldwide declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, November 14th that permits the company to repurchase $3.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 5.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Hilton Worldwide 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.