Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) Announces $0.15 Quarterly Dividend

Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, February 6th,NASDAQ Dividends reports. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be paid a dividend of 0.15 per share on Friday, March 28th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.22%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st.

Hilton Worldwide has a dividend payout ratio of 6.5% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Hilton Worldwide to earn $9.17 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.60 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 6.5%.

Hilton Worldwide Stock Performance

Shares of HLT opened at $268.60 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $252.77 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $238.82. Hilton Worldwide has a fifty-two week low of $193.86 and a fifty-two week high of $275.22. The stock has a market cap of $64.63 billion, a PE ratio of 43.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 1.29.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.09. Hilton Worldwide had a negative return on equity of 54.47% and a net margin of 13.74%. Equities research analysts predict that Hilton Worldwide will post 7.89 EPS for the current year.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on HLT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $219.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $208.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays increased their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $270.00 to $287.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Macquarie upped their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $248.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, 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 report on Tuesday, December 10th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hilton Worldwide presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $246.61.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hilton Worldwide news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 23,366 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 22,833 shares in the company, valued at $5,746,152.78. This represents a 50.58 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 40,653 shares of Hilton Worldwide stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $268.83, for a total transaction of $10,928,745.99. Following the sale, the insider now owns 77,383 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,802,871.89. The trade was a 34.44 % 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 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.