Stock Traders Buy High Volume of Call Options on Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT)

Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) saw unusually large options trading on Thursday. Stock investors purchased 32,074 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 1,098% compared to the average volume of 2,677 call options.

Hilton Worldwide Stock Performance

Shares of HLT opened at $203.93 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $205.70 and a 200 day moving average of $184.45. Hilton Worldwide has a fifty-two week low of $134.43 and a fifty-two week high of $215.79. The firm has a market cap of $51.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.25.

Hilton Worldwide (NYSE:HLT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The company reported $1.53 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.12. Hilton Worldwide had a negative return on equity of 92.07% and a net margin of 11.41%. The company had revenue of $2.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.24 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Hilton Worldwide will post 6.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hilton Worldwide Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.29%. Hilton Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.04%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on HLT. Mizuho lowered their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $245.00 to $242.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Bank of America increased their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $215.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $196.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $176.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price target on Hilton Worldwide from $215.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 20th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $205.06.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Christopher J. Nassetta sold 21,489 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $195.68, for a total value of $4,204,967.52. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 2,536,478 shares in the company, valued at approximately $496,338,015.04. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 2.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in Hilton Worldwide in the 1st quarter worth approximately $11,144,000. Equitable Trust Co. increased its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 20.7% during the first quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 2,966 shares of the company’s stock valued at $633,000 after buying an additional 508 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its stake in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 14.6% during the first quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 132,405 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,243,000 after buying an additional 16,884 shares during the period. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hilton Worldwide during the first quarter valued at approximately $257,000. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Hilton Worldwide by 24.0% during the first quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 5,321 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,135,000 after purchasing an additional 1,029 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.90% of the company’s stock.

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.