Morgan Stanley Issues Positive Forecast for Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) Stock Price

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) had its price objective lifted by stock analysts at Morgan Stanley from $265.00 to $274.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 6.14% from the company’s current price.

HLT has been the topic of several other reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $232.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $270.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Susquehanna increased their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $247.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $247.00 to $277.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Macquarie raised their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $248.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hilton Worldwide presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $250.61.

Hilton Worldwide Stock Down 2.1 %

Hilton Worldwide stock traded down $5.44 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $258.15. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 497,968 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,467,315. The company has a market capitalization of $62.11 billion, a PE ratio of 42.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.29. Hilton Worldwide has a 12 month low of $193.86 and a 12 month high of $275.22. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $254.85 and its 200-day moving average price is $242.41.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.09. Hilton Worldwide had a net margin of 13.74% and a negative return on equity of 54.47%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Hilton Worldwide will post 7.89 EPS for the current 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 shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 5.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 23,366 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the insider now directly 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 40,653 shares of Hilton Worldwide stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.83, for a total value of $10,928,745.99. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 77,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,802,871.89. The trade was a 34.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Hilton Worldwide

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new position in Hilton Worldwide in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Hilton Worldwide in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Hopwood Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in Hilton Worldwide during the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. 95.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.