Trust Co of the South Sells 77 Shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Trust Co of the South reduced its holdings in shares of Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) by 6.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,165 shares of the company’s stock after selling 77 shares during the quarter. Trust Co of the South’s holdings in Hilton Worldwide were worth $288,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Hilton Worldwide during the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $38,000. True Wealth Design LLC grew its stake in Hilton Worldwide by 2,400.0% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 175 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide during the third quarter worth $46,000. Finally, Activest Wealth Management bought a new position in Hilton Worldwide in the 3rd quarter worth about $56,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.90% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hilton Worldwide news, insider Michael W. Duffy sold 14,357 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $235.73, for a total value of $3,384,375.61. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 22,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,382,423.09. This trade represents a 38.60 % 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 the SEC website. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hilton Worldwide Stock Down 0.9 %

NYSE HLT traded down $2.31 on Thursday, reaching $244.85. The company had a trading volume of 586,583 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,255,833. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $178.23 and a 12 month high of $259.01. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $248.30 and its 200 day moving average price is $229.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $59.69 billion, a PE ratio of 52.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 1.30.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $1.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by $0.07. Hilton Worldwide had a net margin of 10.70% and a negative return on equity of 60.85%. The firm had revenue of $2.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.90 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.67 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. will post 7 EPS for the current year.

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

Hilton Worldwide Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th were paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.25%. Hilton Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.88%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on HLT. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $232.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Hilton Worldwide from $237.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. Barclays lifted their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $243.00 to $268.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Bank of America raised their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $230.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Hilton Worldwide from $208.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $238.24.

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.