State of Michigan Retirement System Sells 1,000 Shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

State of Michigan Retirement System lessened its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 1.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 66,123 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,000 shares during the quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $16,343,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in HLT. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Hilton Worldwide by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,134 shares of the company’s stock worth $528,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 2.1% in the third quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,029 shares of the company’s stock worth $468,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings 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 worth $799,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 8,443 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,946,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Graypoint LLC raised its holdings in Hilton Worldwide by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 1,869 shares of the company’s stock worth $431,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on HLT. Jefferies Financial Group upped 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. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $265.00 to $274.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Barclays lifted their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $270.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Macquarie increased their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $248.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $247.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Hilton Worldwide has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $250.61.

Hilton Worldwide Trading Down 1.4 %

NYSE HLT opened at $259.81 on Wednesday. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $193.86 and a 1-year high of $275.22. The company has a market capitalization of $62.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.25, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.29. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $254.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $242.74.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, beating 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, analysts predict that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Hilton Worldwide Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. Hilton Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 9.76%.

Hilton Worldwide declared that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, November 14th that allows the company to repurchase $3.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to purchase up to 5.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Hilton Worldwide

In other news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 23,366 shares of Hilton Worldwide stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The shares were 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 owns 22,833 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,746,152.78. The trade was a 50.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 business’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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 77,383 shares in the company, valued at $20,802,871.89. The trade was a 34.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by 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.