Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. Cuts Stock Holdings in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. lowered its position in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT - Free Report) by 70.1% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,308 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,060 shares during the period. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.'s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $301,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 15.3% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 10,756,416 shares of the company's stock worth $2,479,354,000 after buying an additional 1,429,537 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in Hilton Worldwide by 36.9% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,754,647 shares of the company's stock worth $1,037,464,000 after purchasing an additional 1,282,676 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 7.7% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,817,770 shares of the company's stock worth $614,841,000 after purchasing an additional 200,329 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 2,158,468 shares of the company's stock valued at $470,978,000 after purchasing an additional 26,075 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc lifted its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,814,188 shares of the company's stock valued at $395,856,000 after purchasing an additional 32,531 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HLT has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $244.00 to $243.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Melius Research reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a report on Monday, October 21st. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $235.00 to $236.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Melius downgraded Hilton Worldwide from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $265.00 to $256.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hilton Worldwide presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $228.71.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Laura Fuentes sold 4,919 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.00, for a total transaction of $1,067,423.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 15,949 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,460,933. This trade represents a 23.57 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 14,357 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 22,833 shares in the company, 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. Corporate insiders own 2.50% of the company's stock.

Hilton Worldwide Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of HLT opened at $252.93 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $237.24 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $220.30. The company has a market capitalization of $61.66 billion, a PE ratio of 54.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 1.30. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $165.25 and a 52-week high of $255.86.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $1.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.85 by $0.07. Hilton Worldwide had a net margin of 10.70% and a negative return on equity of 60.85%. The company had revenue of $2.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.90 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.67 EPS. Hilton Worldwide's revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Hilton Worldwide's dividend payout ratio is presently 12.88%.

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