Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) has earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the seventeen brokerages that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and nine have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $207.59.

HLT has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $212.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $245.00 to $242.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $176.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. HSBC increased their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $219.00 to $254.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $203.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 20th.

Hilton Worldwide Stock Performance

NYSE HLT opened at $215.96 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $54.00 billion, a PE ratio of 46.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.31. The business’s fifty day moving average is $203.07 and its 200 day moving average is $196.80. Hilton Worldwide has a fifty-two week low of $136.76 and a fifty-two week high of $216.90.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The company reported $1.53 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $2.57 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.51 billion. Hilton Worldwide had a negative return on equity of 81.29% and a net margin of 11.41%. The business’s revenue was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.24 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Hilton Worldwide will post 7.09 EPS for the current year.

Hilton Worldwide Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Friday, May 17th will be issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.28%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 16th. Hilton Worldwide’s payout ratio is 13.04%.

Insider Transactions at Hilton Worldwide

In related news, Director Melanie Healey bought 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 28th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $199.65 per share, for a total transaction of $399,300.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 14,938 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,982,371.70. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. EdgeRock Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Activest Wealth Management purchased a new stake in Hilton Worldwide in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Independence Bank of Kentucky raised its position in Hilton Worldwide by 66.7% in the first quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 125 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Hilton Worldwide in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Raleigh Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Hilton Worldwide by 48.7% in the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 171 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the period. 95.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.