PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Cuts Holdings in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lowered its holdings in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 7.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 67,383 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,167 shares during the quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $16,654,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,134 shares of the company’s stock worth $528,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the period. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,029 shares of the company’s stock valued at $468,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,232 shares of the company’s stock valued at $799,000 after buying an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in Hilton Worldwide by 14.8% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 372 shares of the company’s stock worth $92,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the period. Finally, Arkadios Wealth Advisors increased its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 1,798 shares of the company’s stock worth $444,000 after buying an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. 95.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Hilton Worldwide Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HLT opened at $238.82 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $57.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.83, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.29. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $254.85 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $243.70. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $193.86 and a 1 year high of $275.22.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7.89 EPS for the current year.

Hilton Worldwide announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, November 14th that permits the company to repurchase $3.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 5.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.25%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. Hilton Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio is 9.76%.

Insider Transactions at Hilton Worldwide

In other news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 23,366 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,746,152.78. The trade was a 50.58 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 40,653 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $268.83, for a total value of $10,928,745.99. Following the sale, the insider now directly 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. Corporate insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on HLT shares. Barclays upped their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $270.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $232.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $247.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $265.00 to $274.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $277.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $250.61.

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.