Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. Plans Quarterly Dividend of $0.15 (NYSE:HLT)

Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, February 6th,NASDAQ Dividends reports. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a dividend of 0.15 per share on Friday, March 28th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.22%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st.

Hilton Worldwide has a payout ratio of 6.5% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Hilton Worldwide to earn $7.86 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.60 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 7.6%.

Hilton Worldwide Trading Down 0.3 %

HLT traded down $0.84 on Friday, hitting $269.55. 1,639,586 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,490,156. The firm has a market cap of $65.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 57.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 1.29. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $250.31 and its 200-day simple moving average is $235.50. Hilton Worldwide has a one year low of $186.83 and a one year high of $274.18.

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

Hilton Worldwide announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, November 14th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 5.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Hilton Worldwide

In related news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 23,366 shares of Hilton Worldwide 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 approximately $5,746,152.78. This trade represents a 50.58 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 40,653 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the insider now owns 77,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,802,871.89. This trade represents a 34.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on HLT. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $219.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $230.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Melius Research reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $208.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Hilton Worldwide currently has a consensus 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.