Versant Capital Management Inc Has $92,000 Stock Holdings in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 14.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 372 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $92,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HLT. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Hilton Worldwide in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Groupama Asset Managment boosted its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 37.8% in the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 15,025 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 4,118 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the 3rd quarter worth about $38,000. True Wealth Design LLC increased its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 2,400.0% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 175 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Hilton Worldwide during the 3rd quarter valued at about $46,000. 95.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Hilton Worldwide

In related news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 14,357 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 owns 22,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,382,423.09. This trade represents a 38.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Hilton Worldwide Stock Performance

Shares of Hilton Worldwide stock opened at $246.52 on Friday. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 52 week low of $178.23 and a 52 week high of $259.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $60.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.90, a PEG ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 1.30. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $248.70 and a two-hundred day moving average of $230.14.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $1.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.85 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $2.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.90 billion. Hilton Worldwide had a negative return on equity of 60.85% and a net margin of 10.70%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.67 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th were paid a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.24%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. Hilton Worldwide’s payout ratio is presently 12.88%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $243.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $235.00 to $236.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday. Truist Financial raised their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $208.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $243.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $238.24.

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.