Hilton Worldwide Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:HLT)

Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Thursday. Stock traders purchased 51,117 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 3,723% compared to the typical volume of 1,337 call options.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 40,653 shares of Hilton Worldwide stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 77,383 shares in the company, valued at $20,802,871.89. This trade represents a 34.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 23,366 shares of the 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 $5,746,152.78. The trade was a 50.58 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hilton Worldwide

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the third quarter worth $25,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new position in Hilton Worldwide in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Groupama Asset Managment lifted its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 37.8% during the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 15,025 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 4,118 shares during the period. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. 95.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hilton Worldwide Price Performance

HLT opened at $269.55 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $65.71 billion, a PE ratio of 57.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 1.29. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $250.31 and a 200 day simple moving average of $235.50. Hilton Worldwide has a 1 year low of $186.83 and a 1 year high of $274.18.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.09. Hilton Worldwide had a net margin of 10.70% and a negative return on equity of 60.85%. Equities analysts anticipate that Hilton Worldwide will post 7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hilton Worldwide Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be paid a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. Hilton Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 9.76%.

Hilton Worldwide declared that its board has approved a share buyback program on Thursday, November 14th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 5.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on HLT. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. TD Cowen cut their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $265.00 to $256.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $219.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $235.00 to $236.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $230.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Hilton Worldwide has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $244.06.

Hilton Worldwide Company Profile

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.