KBC Group NV Lowers Stake in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

KBC Group NV cut its stake in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 15.7% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 51,058 shares of the company’s stock after selling 9,478 shares during the quarter. KBC Group NV’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $11,769,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Hilton Worldwide in the third quarter worth about $25,000. EdgeRock Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Hilton Worldwide during the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. NewSquare Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Hilton Worldwide in the second quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Family Firm Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Hilton Worldwide during the second quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide during the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. 95.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on HLT. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $235.00 to $236.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $265.00 to $256.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $185.00 to $181.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Macquarie raised their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $205.00 to $208.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hilton Worldwide presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $228.71.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hilton Worldwide

In related news, insider Laura Fuentes sold 4,919 shares of Hilton Worldwide stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the insider now owns 15,949 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,460,933. This trade represents a 23.57 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 14,357 shares of the company’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 transaction, the insider now owns 22,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,382,423.09. This represents a 38.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hilton Worldwide Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HLT opened at $248.41 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $60.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.31, a PEG ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 1.30. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $233.57 and its 200-day simple moving average is $218.47. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $164.93 and a 12 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, beating the consensus estimate of $1.85 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $2.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.90 billion. Hilton Worldwide had a net margin of 10.70% and a negative return on equity of 60.85%. The firm’s revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.67 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hilton Worldwide Dividend Announcement

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

Hilton Worldwide declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, November 14th that permits the company to buyback $3.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to buy up to 5.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.