Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) Shares Sold by California Public Employees Retirement System

California Public Employees Retirement System lessened its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 8.4% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 393,758 shares of the company’s stock after selling 36,065 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $97,321,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of HLT. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide during the third quarter valued at $765,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its holdings in Hilton Worldwide by 194.8% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,633 shares of the company’s stock valued at $651,000 after purchasing an additional 1,740 shares in the last quarter. Amundi boosted its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 24.2% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 953,938 shares of the company’s stock worth $232,098,000 after purchasing an additional 185,765 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 225,661 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,774,000 after buying an additional 4,846 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 3.1% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,090,950 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,012,069,000 after buying an additional 121,900 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.90% of the company’s stock.

Hilton Worldwide Price Performance

Shares of HLT opened at $227.53 on Tuesday. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $193.86 and a 12 month high of $275.22. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $250.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $245.23. The stock has a market cap of $54.52 billion, a PE ratio of 37.00, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.29.

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

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st were paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.26%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. Hilton Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 9.76%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 40,653 shares of Hilton Worldwide stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.83, for a total transaction of $10,928,745.99. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 77,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,802,871.89. The trade was a 34.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on HLT. Susquehanna lifted their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $247.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Hilton Worldwide from $232.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Raymond James raised their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $250.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Macquarie upped their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $248.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $219.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $254.53.

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.