Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) Receives Neutral Rating from Macquarie

Macquarie restated their neutral rating on shares of Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $192.00 price objective on the stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Truist Financial reissued a hold rating and issued a $199.00 price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. Mizuho dropped their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $245.00 to $242.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $157.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a report on Tuesday, January 2nd. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $190.00 to $237.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $210.00 to $212.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Hilton Worldwide currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $201.78.

Hilton Worldwide Stock Up 3.9 %

Hilton Worldwide stock opened at $204.70 on Wednesday. Hilton Worldwide has a 52-week low of $134.43 and a 52-week high of $215.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.27, a PEG ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $205.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $184.32.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 7th. The company reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.57 by $0.11. Hilton Worldwide had a net margin of 11.15% and a negative return on equity of 94.46%. The firm had revenue of $2.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.61 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.59 earnings per share. Hilton Worldwide’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Hilton Worldwide will post 7.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity at Hilton Worldwide

In related news, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 21,489 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were 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 $496,338,015.04. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 2.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Hilton Worldwide

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HLT. Independence Bank of Kentucky increased 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 during the last quarter. EdgeRock Capital LLC purchased a new position in Hilton Worldwide in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Activest Wealth Management purchased a new position in Hilton Worldwide in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Hilton Worldwide in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. purchased a new position in Hilton Worldwide in the first quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.90% of the company’s stock.

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.