Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) Shares Acquired by Avestar Capital LLC

Avestar Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 10.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,976 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 276 shares during the quarter. Avestar Capital LLC’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $736,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 10.9% in the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 143,365 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,142,000 after acquiring an additional 14,040 shares during the period. Certuity LLC boosted its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Certuity LLC now owns 1,301 shares of the company’s stock worth $322,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the period. Portfolio Design Labs LLC grew its position in Hilton Worldwide by 37.3% during the 4th quarter. Portfolio Design Labs LLC now owns 8,158 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,016,000 after purchasing an additional 2,216 shares during the last quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 8.7% in the fourth quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,337 shares of the company’s stock valued at $330,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the period. Finally, Savant Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 7.0% during the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 3,990 shares of the company’s stock worth $986,000 after buying an additional 262 shares during the period. 95.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HLT has been the subject of several analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $247.00 to $277.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Mizuho restated a “neutral” rating and set a $263.00 price target (up previously from $243.00) on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective 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. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $270.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Macquarie boosted their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $248.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Hilton Worldwide currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $246.61.

Hilton Worldwide Stock Performance

Hilton Worldwide stock opened at $269.56 on Friday. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $189.77 and a fifty-two week high of $275.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $65.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.29. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $251.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $237.12.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.09. Hilton Worldwide had a net margin of 13.74% and a negative return on equity of 57.01%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

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

Hilton Worldwide declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, November 14th that allows the company to buyback $3.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 5.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Hilton Worldwide

In other Hilton Worldwide news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 23,366 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The shares were 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. This trade represents a 50.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 40,653 shares of Hilton Worldwide stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 77,383 shares in the company, 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.

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.