Merit Financial Group LLC Buys Shares of 3,052 Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Merit Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 3,052 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $754,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in HLT. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Groupama Asset Managment increased its stake 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 worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 4,118 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the third quarter worth about $38,000. True Wealth Design LLC increased its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 2,400.0% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 175 shares of the company's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares during the period. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the third quarter worth about $46,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.90% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Hilton Worldwide

In other Hilton Worldwide news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 23,366 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $251.66, for a total transaction of $5,880,287.56. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 22,833 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,746,152.78. This represents a 50.58 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 2.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hilton Worldwide Price Performance

Shares of HLT traded up $2.00 on Thursday, hitting $250.00. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,221,859 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,373,519. The company has a market capitalization of $60.94 billion, a PE ratio of 53.65, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.30. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $186.83 and a fifty-two week high of $259.01. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $249.28 and a 200 day moving average price of $232.85.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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 the consensus estimate of $2.90 billion. Hilton Worldwide had a negative return on equity of 60.85% and a net margin of 10.70%. Hilton Worldwide's revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.67 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7 EPS for the current year.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

HLT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays lifted their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $243.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $277.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Bank of America boosted their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $230.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $247.00 to $277.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $235.00 to $236.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Hilton Worldwide has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $238.24.

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.