Bridgewater Associates LP Sells 31,831 Shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Bridgewater Associates LP decreased its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 30.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 72,548 shares of the company’s stock after selling 31,831 shares during the quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $16,722,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its position in Hilton Worldwide by 23.7% during the 1st quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 1,405 shares of the company’s stock valued at $300,000 after purchasing an additional 269 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 45.4% during the first quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 18,392 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,928,000 after buying an additional 5,740 shares during the last quarter. Comerica Bank increased its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 3.7% during the first quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 87,353 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,633,000 after acquiring an additional 3,077 shares in the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC raised its holdings in Hilton Worldwide by 158.0% in the 1st quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 6,400 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,365,000 after acquiring an additional 3,919 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Atria Investments Inc lifted its position in Hilton Worldwide by 12.4% in the 1st quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 21,479 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,582,000 after acquiring an additional 2,364 shares in the last quarter. 95.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hilton Worldwide Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HLT opened at $250.42 on Thursday. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $165.25 and a 1 year high of $255.86. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $239.19 and a 200-day moving average price of $221.46. The stock has a market cap of $61.05 billion, a PE ratio of 53.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 1.30.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $1.92 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $2.87 billion for 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%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.67 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7 EPS for the current year.

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Hilton Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.88%.

Hilton Worldwide announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback 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 generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HLT has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Truist Financial boosted their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $208.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $185.00 to $181.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $232.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $230.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $235.00 to $236.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $228.71.

Insider Activity

In other Hilton Worldwide news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 14,357 shares of Hilton Worldwide stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.73, for a total value of $3,384,375.61. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 22,833 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,382,423.09. The trade was a 38.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Laura Fuentes sold 4,919 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $217.00, for a total transaction of $1,067,423.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 15,949 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,460,933. The trade was a 23.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Hilton Worldwide 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.