Hilton Worldwide Posts In-Line Q1 Earnings

Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc HLT reported in-line earnings for the first quarter. For the full-year, Hilton Worldwide now expects adjusted earnings of $0.79 to $0.83 per share, versus prior outlook of $0.78 to $0.83 per share. Analysts had projected earnings of $0.83 per share. For the current quarter, Hilton projects adjusted earnings of $0.21 to $0.23 per share, and RevPAR to rise 5 percent to 7 percent. Analysts had expected earnings of $0.23 per share. The McLean, Virginia-based company posted a quarterly profit of $150 million, or $0.15 per share, versus a year-ago profit of $123 million or $0.12 per share. Excluding certain items, the company earned $0.12 per share. Its revenue rose 10 percent to $2.6 billion. However, analysts were expecting earnings of $0.12 per share on revenue of 2.41 billion. The average estimate among 5 Estimize users was for earnings of $0.13 per share and revenue of $2.5 billion. System-wide comparable RevPAR rose 6.6 percent in the quarter. Adjusted EBITDA rose 18 percent year-over-year to $599 million. System-wide occupancy rose 2.1 percentage points year-over-year to 71.1 percent in the quarter, while average daily rates climbed 3.5 percent. Rates gained 4 percent in the Americas and climbed 1.3 percent in Europe. However, rates slipped 0.1 percent in the Asia Pacific region. During the quarter, the company opened more than 8,000 rooms. As of March 31, 2015, the company had $816 million in total cash and cash equivalents. Christopher J. Nassetta, President & Chief Executive Officer of Hilton Worldwide, said, "We started the year with another strong quarter, with top line growth at the high end of our guidance, despite significant weather impact in the U.S., and strong fee growth and owned asset performance, that all resulted in Adjusted EBITDA exceeding our guidance. Our portfolio of industry-leading brands continues to fuel our growth, resulting in the industry's largest pipeline and most rooms under construction globally." Hilton Worldwide shares fell 0.67 percent to close at $29.44 yesterday.