Citigroup Inc. Cuts Position in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Citigroup Inc. trimmed its position in Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 32.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 180,402 shares of the company’s stock after selling 87,782 shares during the quarter. Citigroup Inc.’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $41,583,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. EdgeRock Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the second quarter valued at about $33,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the third quarter valued at about $38,000. NewSquare Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide in the second quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Family Firm Inc. acquired a new stake in Hilton Worldwide during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hilton Worldwide

In other Hilton Worldwide news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 14,357 shares of Hilton Worldwide stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $235.73, for a total transaction of $3,384,375.61. Following the sale, the insider now owns 22,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,382,423.09. The trade was a 38.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Laura Fuentes sold 4,919 shares of Hilton Worldwide stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.00, for a total value of $1,067,423.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 15,949 shares in the company, valued at $3,460,933. The trade was a 23.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hilton Worldwide Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE HLT opened at $253.00 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $61.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 1.30. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 12-month low of $165.25 and a 12-month high of $255.86. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $237.24 and its 200 day simple moving average is $220.58.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $1.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.85 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $2.87 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.90 billion. Hilton Worldwide had a negative return on equity of 60.85% and a net margin of 10.70%. The business’s revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.67 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hilton Worldwide announced that its board has approved 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 reacquire up to 5.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Hilton Worldwide’s payout ratio is currently 12.88%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on HLT. Melius lowered Hilton Worldwide from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Mizuho raised their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $243.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Melius Research restated a “hold” rating on shares of Hilton Worldwide in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $208.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $244.00 to $243.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hilton Worldwide currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $228.71.

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.