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

Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, October 23rd, Zacks reports. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a dividend of 0.15 per share on Friday, December 27th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.26%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th.

Hilton Worldwide has raised its dividend payment by an average of 58.7% annually over the last three years. Hilton Worldwide has a payout ratio of 7.4% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Hilton Worldwide to earn $8.09 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 7.4%.

Hilton Worldwide Price Performance

Shares of HLT opened at $233.53 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $58.39 billion, a PE ratio of 50.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.31. Hilton Worldwide has a one year low of $147.58 and a one year high of $240.00. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $224.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $213.94.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $1.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $2.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.90 billion. Hilton Worldwide had a negative return on equity of 69.65% and a net margin of 11.20%. The firm’s revenue was up 10.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.63 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Hilton Worldwide will post 7.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on HLT. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $230.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Melius lowered shares of Hilton Worldwide from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Macquarie lifted their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $205.00 to $208.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Melius Research reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a report on Monday. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $221.47.

Insider Transactions at Hilton Worldwide

In other news, insider Laura Fuentes sold 4,919 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $217.00, for a total value of $1,067,423.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 15,949 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,460,933. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 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.