Central Pacific Bank Trust Division Reduces Holdings in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Central Pacific Bank Trust Division lowered its stake in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 6.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,437 shares of the company’s stock after selling 238 shares during the quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $849,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of HLT. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 20.2% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,456 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,101,000 after acquiring an additional 750 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in Hilton Worldwide by 14.8% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 372 shares of the company’s stock worth $92,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas purchased a new position in Hilton Worldwide in the 3rd quarter valued at about $631,000. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,090,950 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,012,069,000 after purchasing an additional 121,900 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide during the third quarter worth about $765,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hilton Worldwide

In related news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 23,366 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $251.66, for a total value of $5,880,287.56. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 22,833 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,746,152.78. The trade was a 50.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hilton Worldwide Price Performance

Shares of HLT opened at $246.52 on Friday. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $178.23 and a 12 month high of $259.01. The stock has a market cap of $60.10 billion, a PE ratio of 52.90, a P/E/G ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 1.30. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $248.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $229.92.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $1.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $2.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.90 billion. Hilton Worldwide had a negative return on equity of 60.85% and a net margin of 10.70%. Hilton Worldwide’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.67 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7 earnings per share for the current year.

Hilton Worldwide declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, November 14th that allows the company to repurchase $3.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 5.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Hilton Worldwide Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was 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%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $243.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $277.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday. Melius Research reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Robert W. Baird lifted 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. Finally, TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $265.00 to $256.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target 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.