Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. Boosts Position in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. raised its stake in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 120.3% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 53,235 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 29,065 shares during the period. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P.’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $12,266,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HLT. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,029 shares of the company’s stock worth $468,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 0.5% during the third quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 8,443 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,946,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV increased its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 4.1% during the third quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 1,169 shares of the company’s stock worth $269,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Graypoint LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 1,869 shares of the company’s stock valued at $431,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meadow Creek Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Meadow Creek Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,184 shares of the company’s stock valued at $273,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HLT has been the subject of a number of research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Hilton Worldwide in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $245.00 price objective for the company. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $244.00 to $243.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Bank of America raised their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $230.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. TD Cowen lowered their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $265.00 to $256.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Melius downgraded Hilton Worldwide from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hilton Worldwide has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $228.71.

Hilton Worldwide Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of Hilton Worldwide stock opened at $250.48 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $240.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $222.23. The stock has a market cap of $61.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 1.30. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $166.92 and a twelve month high of $255.86.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $1.92 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 firm had revenue of $2.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.90 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.67 EPS. Hilton Worldwide’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7 earnings per share for the current year.

Hilton Worldwide Dividend Announcement

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

Hilton Worldwide declared that its board has approved a share buyback plan 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 stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 14,357 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the insider now owns 22,833 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,382,423.09. The trade was a 38.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Laura Fuentes sold 4,919 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 15,949 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,460,933. This represents 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 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.