Proficio Capital Partners LLC Takes Position in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor acquired 1,050 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $260,000.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of HLT. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position 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 worth $2,479,354,000 after acquiring an additional 1,429,537 shares during the last quarter. Stockbridge Partners LLC raised its holdings in Hilton Worldwide by 63.6% during 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 during the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its position in Hilton Worldwide by 179.6% during the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 300,574 shares of the company’s stock valued at $69,282,000 after purchasing an additional 193,063 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its stake 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 valued at $840,164,000 after purchasing an additional 164,461 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position 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 buying an additional 121,900 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 40,653 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.83, for a total value of $10,928,745.99. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 77,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $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 SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Hilton Worldwide Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HLT opened at $234.68 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $251.65 and a 200-day moving average of $244.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $56.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.16, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.29. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $193.86 and a fifty-two week high of $275.22.

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

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be paid a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. Hilton Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.76%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Raymond James raised their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $250.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Mizuho restated a “neutral” rating and set a $263.00 target price (up from $243.00) on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $219.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $247.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Macquarie increased their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $248.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $254.53.

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.