Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) Hits New 12-Month High – What’s Next?

Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $248.52 and last traded at $248.50, with a volume of 70085 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $235.65.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on HLT shares. Melius Research reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a research report on Monday, October 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed 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. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $208.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Mizuho raised their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $243.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Melius cut shares of Hilton Worldwide from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Hilton Worldwide has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $228.71.

Hilton Worldwide Stock Up 4.6 %

The company’s 50-day moving average is $228.38 and its 200-day moving average is $216.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $60.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.57, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 1.30.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $1.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $2.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.90 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.67 earnings per share. Hilton Worldwide’s revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7 EPS for the current year.

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 14,357 shares of Hilton Worldwide stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $235.73, for a total transaction of $3,384,375.61. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 22,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,382,423.09. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Hilton Worldwide news, insider Laura Fuentes sold 4,919 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $217.00, for a total transaction of $1,067,423.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 15,949 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,460,933. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 14,357 shares of the company’s 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 owns 22,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,382,423.09. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in HLT. Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new position in Hilton Worldwide during the first quarter worth $2,792,000. AIA Group Ltd increased its holdings in Hilton Worldwide by 43.4% during the 1st quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 14,103 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,008,000 after purchasing an additional 4,265 shares in the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co boosted its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 3.5% in the first quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 137,675 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,375,000 after purchasing an additional 4,677 shares in the last quarter. PGGM Investments grew its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 337.6% during the second quarter. PGGM Investments now owns 14,378 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,137,000 after purchasing an additional 11,092 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UniSuper Management Pty Ltd increased its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 234.4% in the first quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 7,986 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,703,000 after buying an additional 5,598 shares in the last quarter. 95.90% of the stock is currently 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.