Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) Shares Sold by International Assets Investment Management LLC

International Assets Investment Management LLC decreased its stake in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 99.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,064 shares of the company’s stock after selling 477,159 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $506,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HLT. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Groupama Asset Managment boosted its position in Hilton Worldwide by 37.8% during 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 in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the third quarter valued at $38,000. True Wealth Design LLC raised its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 2,400.0% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 175 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the 3rd quarter worth about $46,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HLT has been the subject of a number of research reports. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $230.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Melius Research reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Melius downgraded Hilton Worldwide from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $238.24.

Hilton Worldwide Stock Performance

Shares of HLT stock opened at $240.89 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $249.22 and a 200 day moving average price of $231.04. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a one year low of $180.62 and a one year high of $259.01.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) 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. Hilton Worldwide had a negative return on equity of 60.85% and a net margin of 10.70%. The business had revenue of $2.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.90 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.67 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hilton Worldwide Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. Hilton Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.88%.

Hilton Worldwide announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, November 14th that permits the company to buyback $3.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 5.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Hilton Worldwide

In other news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 23,366 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $251.66, for a total value of $5,880,287.56. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 22,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,746,152.78. This represents a 50.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by 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.