Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.09 EPS

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The company reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.09, Zacks reports. Hilton Worldwide had a negative return on equity of 60.85% and a net margin of 10.70%. Hilton Worldwide updated its FY 2025 guidance to 7.710-7.820 EPS and its Q1 2025 guidance to 1.570-1.630 EPS.

Hilton Worldwide Stock Performance

Hilton Worldwide stock traded down $0.77 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $269.62. 712,000 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,451,478. Hilton Worldwide has a 12 month low of $186.83 and a 12 month high of $274.18. The business’s 50-day moving average is $250.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is $235.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $65.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.87, a P/E/G ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 1.29.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HLT has been the topic of several recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $277.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Melius cut shares of Hilton Worldwide from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Mizuho reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $263.00 price target (up previously from $243.00) on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $219.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Hilton Worldwide currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $239.88.

Hilton Worldwide declared that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Thursday, November 14th that permits the company to repurchase $3.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase 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.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 23,366 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $251.66, for a total transaction of $5,880,287.56. Following the sale, the insider now owns 22,833 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,746,152.78. This represents a 50.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 2.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.