Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Grows Stock Holdings in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its holdings in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 2.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 225,661 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,846 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $55,774,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of HLT. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 32.3% during the third quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,189 shares of the company’s stock valued at $735,000 after purchasing an additional 778 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 15.3% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 10,756,416 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,479,354,000 after purchasing an additional 1,429,537 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 67.1% during the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 53,657 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,368,000 after purchasing an additional 21,545 shares in the last quarter. Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 19.0% during the third quarter. Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC now owns 21,900 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,048,000 after purchasing an additional 3,500 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Hilton Worldwide during the third quarter valued at approximately $38,000. 95.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Hilton Worldwide Price Performance

Shares of Hilton Worldwide stock opened at $247.35 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $255.04 and a 200 day moving average price of $243.54. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $193.86 and a 1 year high of $275.22. The stock has a market cap of $59.51 billion, a PE ratio of 40.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.29.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.09. Hilton Worldwide had a net margin of 13.74% and a negative return on equity of 54.47%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7.89 EPS for the current year.

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

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.24%. Hilton Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio is presently 9.76%.

Insider Activity at Hilton Worldwide

In related news, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 40,653 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $268.83, for a total transaction of $10,928,745.99. Following the sale, the insider now owns 77,383 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,802,871.89. This trade represents a 34.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 23,366 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $251.66, for a total transaction of $5,880,287.56. Following the sale, the insider now owns 22,833 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,746,152.78. This represents a 50.58 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Raymond James raised their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $250.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $270.00 to $287.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $277.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $247.00 to $277.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Susquehanna raised their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $247.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hilton Worldwide presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $250.61.

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.