Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) Shares Gap Up to $197.04

Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $197.04, but opened at $205.56. Hilton Worldwide shares last traded at $208.62, with a volume of 551,934 shares trading hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on HLT shares. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $157.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 2nd. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $203.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $190.00 to $237.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $215.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Hilton Worldwide has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $201.78.

Hilton Worldwide Trading Up 4.4 %

The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $205.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $184.17. The company has a market cap of $51.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.25.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 7th. The company reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.57 by $0.11. Hilton Worldwide had a negative return on equity of 94.46% and a net margin of 11.15%. The company had revenue of $2.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.61 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.59 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 23rd were paid a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 22nd. Hilton Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio is presently 13.86%.

Insider Transactions at Hilton Worldwide

In other news, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 21,489 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $195.68, for a total value of $4,204,967.52. Following the sale, the insider now owns 2,536,478 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $496,338,015.04. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hilton Worldwide

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of HLT. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in Hilton Worldwide during the third quarter valued at $25,000. EdgeRock Capital LLC acquired a new position in Hilton Worldwide during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Activest Wealth Management acquired a new position in Hilton Worldwide during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Independence Bank of Kentucky grew its stake 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Frazier Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Hilton Worldwide in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. 95.90% of the stock is 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.