Empirical Finance LLC Has $435,000 Stock Position in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Empirical Finance LLC lessened its holdings in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 3.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,888 shares of the company’s stock after selling 66 shares during the quarter. Empirical Finance LLC’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $435,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of HLT. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the third quarter worth about $25,000. EdgeRock Capital LLC bought a new position in Hilton Worldwide in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. NewSquare Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Hilton Worldwide in the second quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Family Firm Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide during the second quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hilton Worldwide during the third quarter worth $38,000. Institutional investors own 95.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 14,357 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $5,382,423.09. This represents a 38.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Laura Fuentes sold 4,919 shares of Hilton Worldwide stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.00, for a total value of $1,067,423.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 15,949 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,460,933. The trade was a 23.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hilton Worldwide Price Performance

Shares of HLT opened at $248.41 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $233.57 and a 200-day moving average of $218.76. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a one year low of $164.93 and a one year high of $255.86. The company has a market cap of $60.56 billion, a PE ratio of 53.31, a P/E/G ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 1.30.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $2.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.90 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.67 earnings per share. Hilton Worldwide’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hilton Worldwide declared that its board has authorized 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 purchase up to 5.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.24%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. Hilton Worldwide’s payout ratio is presently 12.88%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on HLT shares. Bank of America lifted 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. TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $265.00 to $256.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $232.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Macquarie raised their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $205.00 to $208.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Mizuho upped their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $243.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $228.71.

Hilton Worldwide 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.