Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

Shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the nineteen brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eight have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $238.24.

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $247.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Bank of America boosted their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $230.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $232.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $235.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st.

Insider Transactions at Hilton Worldwide

In other Hilton Worldwide news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 23,366 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $251.66, for a total value of $5,880,287.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 22,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,746,152.78. The trade was a 50.58 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Hilton Worldwide

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. FMR LLC raised its position in Hilton Worldwide by 2.1% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,215,391 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,585,148,000 after purchasing an additional 226,223 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 15.3% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 10,756,416 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,479,354,000 after purchasing an additional 1,429,537 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 3.1% in 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 in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,399,270 shares of the company’s stock worth $840,164,000 after purchasing an additional 164,461 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stockbridge Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 63.6% in the 3rd quarter. Stockbridge Partners LLC now owns 1,544,399 shares of the company’s stock worth $355,984,000 after purchasing an additional 600,593 shares in the last quarter. 95.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Hilton Worldwide Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE HLT opened at $254.13 on Thursday. Hilton Worldwide has a twelve month low of $186.83 and a twelve month high of $259.01. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $249.36 and its 200-day moving average price is $233.88. The company has a market capitalization of $61.95 billion, a PE ratio of 54.53, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.30.

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