Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. Raises Stock Position in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT - Free Report) by 3.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 73,048 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,613 shares during the quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $16,838,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. PGGM Investments increased its position in Hilton Worldwide by 337.6% during the 2nd quarter. PGGM Investments now owns 14,378 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,137,000 after purchasing an additional 11,092 shares during the period. Chartwell Investment Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 35.8% during the third quarter. Chartwell Investment Partners LLC now owns 28,756 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,628,000 after buying an additional 7,583 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in Hilton Worldwide by 201.4% in the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 181,576 shares of the company's stock worth $41,853,000 after buying an additional 121,322 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Hilton Worldwide during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Raymond James & Associates boosted its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 10.9% during the second quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 321,656 shares of the company's stock valued at $70,185,000 after purchasing an additional 31,548 shares in the last quarter. 95.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Bank of America raised their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $230.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $244.00 to $243.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Mizuho raised their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $243.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Melius cut shares of Hilton Worldwide from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $230.59.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hilton Worldwide news, insider Laura Fuentes sold 4,919 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.00, for a total value of $1,067,423.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 15,949 shares in the company, valued at $3,460,933. The trade was a 23.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 14,357 shares of the firm's 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 transaction, the insider now owns 22,833 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,382,423.09. The trade was a 38.60 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hilton Worldwide Stock Up 1.3 %

NYSE:HLT traded up $3.26 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $256.98. 1,260,756 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,541,794. The company has a market cap of $62.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.25 and a beta of 1.30. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $175.80 and a 1 year high of $259.01. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $243.56 and a 200 day moving average price of $224.65.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $1.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.85 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $2.87 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.67 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.23%. Hilton Worldwide's dividend payout ratio is presently 12.88%.

Hilton Worldwide announced that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, November 14th that permits the company to repurchase $3.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 5.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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.