5 Largest Hotel Chains in the US in 2022

3. Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 60

Number of Properties in the U.S.: 5,582

Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) is a McLean, Virginia-based hospitality company with a footprint of 18 brands and over 7,000 properties.

To boost shareholder return, Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) increased the share buyback plan from $2.5 billion to $4.3 billion on November 11. For Q3 2022, Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) reported that the company’s top line increased by 35.4% YoY to $2.37 billion, and EPS of $1.31 was seven cents higher than the consensus forecast. For Q4 2022, Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) anticipates EPS to be in the range of $1.15 to $1.23. The midpoint of $1.19 is one cent higher than the analysts’ estimates.

Here’s what Pershing Square Holdings said about Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) in its Q2 2022 investor letter:

“Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HLT) is a high-quality, asset-light, high-margin business with significant long-term growth potential, led by a superb management team. The unforeseen arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic catalyzed a rapid and near-complete standstill in global travel, with RevPAR (the industry metric for same-store sales at a given hotel) down roughly 90% at the nadir of the pandemic. We increased our investment in Hilton during the pandemic as we believed the economic dislocation from COVID-19 would prove to be transient and that industry projections regarding the timeline for recovery were too pessimistic.

From the moment the pandemic began, Hilton’s management team took decisive actions to ensure the company not only managed through what it knew would be a challenging period, but also positioned the company to generate improved margins, cash flows, and investment returns once the business recovered. In hindsight, Hilton’s experience with COVID-19 – the 100-year proverbial flood – affirmed the company’s unique high-quality, asset light, high-margin business model, and reinforced our belief that Hilton deserves a premium valuation.

While Hilton entered 2022 impacted by the Omicron variant, results have vastly improved throughout the year as COVID-19 has evolved towards a more endemic virus, and consumer behavior has adapted accordingly. In recent months, Hilton’s system-wide RevPAR has surpassed 2019 levels and continues to improve. Recent strength has been led by domestic leisure travel occasions as consumer spending continues to shift from goods to services. …” (Click here to read the full text)