Xponance Inc. Increases Holdings in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Xponance Inc. boosted its stake in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 4.4% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 48,287 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,018 shares during the period. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $11,935,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of HLT. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 15.3% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 10,756,416 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,479,354,000 after buying an additional 1,429,537 shares in the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in Hilton Worldwide in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $226,000. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 50.9% in the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,940 shares of the company’s stock valued at $678,000 after buying an additional 992 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 3,722 shares of the company’s stock valued at $858,000 after buying an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 223,848 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,597,000 after buying an additional 6,322 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.90% of the company’s stock.

Hilton Worldwide Trading Down 3.3 %

Shares of NYSE HLT opened at $226.86 on Wednesday. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 12-month low of $193.86 and a 12-month high of $275.22. The company has a market cap of $54.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.29. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $252.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $244.19.

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

Hilton Worldwide Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.26%. Hilton Worldwide’s payout ratio is currently 9.76%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HLT has been the subject of several analyst reports. 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 report on Tuesday, December 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $219.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report 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 report on Thursday, January 2nd. Mizuho reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $263.00 price target (up from $243.00) on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Susquehanna boosted their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $247.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hilton Worldwide has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $250.61.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hilton Worldwide

In other Hilton Worldwide news, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 40,653 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.