Hilton touts third-quarter profitability amid weak travel environment
Hilton touts third-quarter profitability amid weak travel environment
Net income grows $77 million year over year as hotel revenue falls
During the third quarter, Hilton opened 199 hotels with 24,800 rooms. One of those openings was the Kromo Bangkok, Curio Collection by Hilton, the soft brand's first hotel in Thailand. (Hilton)
https://www.costar.com/article/1642663404/hilton-touts-third-quarter-profitability-amid-weak-travel-environment?
Hilton kicked off what promises to be a rocky earnings season for hotel companies by touting strong profitability growth amid a weak environment for travel demand and hotel revenue.
In the third quarter, revenue per available room fell 1.1% for the international hotel brand company but Hilton still saw net income of $421 million — up from $344 million in the same quarter the year prior — and $976 million in adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, an 8% year-over-year improvement.
Hilton President and CEO Chris Nassetta pointed to calendar shifts and a weak economy as headwinds for travel in the third quarter.
"Unfavorable holidays and events, softer international inbound to the U.S., declines in U.S. government-related travel and portfolio renovations weighed on results in the quarter," he said.
Leisure travel remains slightly more resilient than business transient, Nassetta said. Hilton did manage some gains in group pace despite a 4% fall in group RevPAR in the third quarter.
He added Hilton will continue to outperform on profitability given the company's track record.
"We've been super disciplined forever on costs since we've gone public," Nassetta said. "If you look at us versus core competitors relative to our size and scale, we've always been pretty efficient, and I believe we will continue to be."
Longer term, Nassetta said he sees greater opportunities to cut costs using artificial intelligence.
"There are a lot of tools available to us to continue to drive efficiencies, and we're going to use those," he said. "In the world of AI redefining a lot of processes, there are opportunities to continue to do things more efficiently and be able to accomplish more with less."
While the potential for AI in the hotel industry has been a popular talking point in recent years, Nassetta said it's more of a reality today than ever before.
"This isn't a pipe dream that I'm thinking about," he said. "We're doing it. We're testing. We're learning, and we think there's a huge opportunity."
Long-term optimism
While the hotel industry is broadly more likely to end 2025 on a low note than a high one, Nassetta said there are still plenty of reasons to feel optimistic looking further out.
"I don't have my head in the sand, but I like to try and lift up above the noise," he said. "That's sort of what I do in my personal and professional life. And when I do that, it makes me feel pretty good about the next year. So I would bet a lot of money that '26 is going to be better than '25, and I'd bet a lot of money '27 is going to be better than '26. The exact slope of that is difficult to determine."
Easier year-over-year comparisons, elections and major events such as the FIFA World Cup spread across North American markets are among Nassetta's reasons for optimism for 2026.
The World Cup "isn't like the Super Bowl where it's a weekend, it's a fairly extended sort of experience," he said. "So all of those things are going to be good."
There's also plenty of opportunities for growing Hilton's unit count and fees, particularly as Hilton continues to get "much greater than our fair share" of conversion interest from hotel owners, Nassetta said.
The outlook for new hotel construction should improve significantly in coming years, most notably because the current status quo of historically low supply growth can't last forever, he added.
"You're still in a super cycle of underdevelopment in the industry where you're adding capacity at less than 1% against a 2.5% 30-year average," he said.
Third-quarter performance
During the third quarter, Hilton recorded drops in both occupancy and average daily rate, down 0.5 percentage points and 0.5% year over year, respectively.
Nassetta said the drop in rates is less about pricing integrity than the types of business Hilton hotels are getting in the door.
"If you dissect it, it's really been a mix shift that's affected rate," he said. "You're just taking lower-rated customers and they're substituting for higher-rated customers. You're taking leisure customers that pay less ... it's a lower rate that you're substituting in for business transient, which is a higher rate. So when you deconstruct it scientifically, I feel pretty good that rate integrity has been reasonably good."
Hilton is projecting 1% RevPAR growth in the fourth quarter and flat to 1% growth in that metric for the full-year 2025.
Hilton brought in $3.1 billion in total revenues in the quarter, up from $2.9 billion during the same period of 2024.
The company also opened 199 hotels in the quarter, adding a net 23,200 rooms. Key openings include the Conrad Hamburg and the Kromo Bangkok, Curio Collection by Hilton.
As of press time, Hilton's stock was trading at $277.49, up 12.3% year to date. The New York Stock Exchange composite was up 12.8% for the same period.
Hyatt and Homeinns sign China Hyatt Studios master-franchise agreement
Deal is for 50 hotels in primary and secondary Chinese cities
Hyatt’s new development agreement with China’s Homeinns Hotel Group for the Hyatt Studios brand will expand on its previous agreement to develop the UrCove by Hyatt across China. Pictured above are Hyatt and Homeinns officials at the signing ceremony for the Hyatt Studios agreement. (Hyatt Hotels Corp.)
https://www.costar.com/article/1554263470/hyatt-and-homeinns-sign-china-hyatt-studios-master-franchise-agreement?
Hyatt Hotels Corp. is partnering with Shanghai-based Homeinns Hotel Group once again.
This time, the Chicago-based global hotel brand company has a master franchise agreement in place with Homeinns to develop the 50 Hyatt Studios hotels across China's primary and secondary cities. There's no definitive timeline, but Hyatt said in a news release development will take place over “the next several years (to) develop a robust pipeline to drive future growth across China.”
Hyatt added that the deal “will expand [our] portfolio in the upper-midscale segment by adding hotels in Hyatt’s new extended-stay brand in one of the world’s most dynamic hospitality markets.”
Hyatt launched the Hyatt Studios brand in 2023, and the brand's first opened hotel was the 122-room Hyatt Studios Mobile-Tillmans Corner in Mobile, Alabama. Hyatt Studios is part of Hyatt's Essentials brand division, which also contains brands Caption by Hyatt, Hyatt House, Hyatt Place, Hyatt Select, Unscripted by Hyatt and UrCove by Hyatt.
This isn't the first time Hyatt and Homeinns have signed a brand deal in China. In June 2019, both companies agreed to develop the upper-midscale UrCove by Hyatt brand across China. Currently, UrCove properties are solely in China.
“Together, [Hyatt and Homeinns] have already demonstrated the strength of this collaboration through the successful launch of the UrCove brand,” David Sun, chairman and CEO of BTG Homeinns, Homeinns’ parent company, said in a statement. “Building on that success, we are now extending our relationship into the extended-stay segment with Hyatt Studios. With the introduction of the brand, we look forward to crafting a localized, tailored experience for the Chinese market, especially for the younger generation of travelers.”
Hyatt, which has approximately 1,450 hotels, will announce its third-quarter 2025 earnings results on Nov. 6.
BTG Hotels Group merged with Homeinns Hotel Group in 2016. The firm currently has more than 3,000 hotels in approximately 300 cities in China.
Founded in 2002, Homeinns was the first Chinese hotel chain to be publicly listed in a non-China exchange when it was added to the NASDAQ index in October 2006.
Ghostly guests: Hotels that have spirits checked in for the afterlife
Thrill seekers can stay at these 10 historic haunts
The 1886 Crescent Hotel & Spa bills itself as "America's most haunted hotel" and has several spirits roaming its halls. (Crescent Hotel & Spa)
https://www.costar.com/article/834984920/ghostly-guests-hotels-that-have-spirits-checked-in-for-the-afterlife?
As Halloween approaches, the veil between the living and the dead may thin, but many hotels across North America boast of hauntings year round.
Dozens of historic hotels claim to have ghostly lore, but these 10 are primed for guests to check in and mingle with ghosts who appear to have never checked out.
when it was a hospital for cancer patients. One of his patients who died under his care, Theodora, also haunts the hotel by tidying up behind guests — rearranging their closet or stacking spare change on the top of the dresser.
Get spooked: Guests can choose from a plethora of spooky experiences — from tour options for all ages to premium stay packages and souvenirs.
Haunting: Austin, Texas
Ghost story: Located just blocks away from the Texas State Capitol, the 189-room historic hotel opened in 1886 by cattle baron Jesse Lincoln Driskill, who died just a few years after The Driskill's doors opened. His ghost has been noted to accompany the smell of cigars in the hotel lobby or bar. Additionally, two separate jilted brides haunt The Driskill after ending their own lives after being left at the altar. The last ghost of note is a little girl who died falling down the hotel's grand staircase. She haunts current guests by giggling down the hall, bouncing balls down the stairs or moving toys belonging to guests.
Get spooked: Learn more about The Driskill on a local ghost tour or book room 525, where one of the jilted brides stayed. The hotel is currently going through renovations that are expected to conclude next summer.
Haunting: Salem, Massachusetts
Ghost story: Known for its 1692 Salem Witch Trials, Salem is one of those towns that has so much history and lore, it can't help but have ghost stories at every corner. The spookiest example is the 93-key Hawthorne Hotel, which dates back to 1925 and is named for Salem resident and author Nathaniel Hawthorne. The Hawthorne Hotel's spirit sightings range from long-passed sea captains returning to their favorite haunt, a ghostly woman roaming the halls and unexplained noises in the night. The hotel was named to USA Today's top 10 haunted hotels list in 2023 and was featured in Syfy's popular paranormal show, Ghost Hunters, in 2007.
Get spooked: The hotel has many rooms rumored to be haunted, including room 325, which is presumed to have the most paranormal activity. Rooms 612, 621 and 325 also each have a haunted history among guests and hotel staff. Each year, the Hawthorne hosts a Halloween ball and offers guests a "Hocus Pocus" experience, a nod to the iconic movie filmed around the town.
Haunting: New York, New York
Ghost story: Known to have housed many creatives and socialites throughout its tumultuous 141-year history, The Chelsea Hotel was reopened as a 160-room luxury hotel in 2022. Two tragic heroines roam the halls of the hotel in their afterlives. A woman named Mary survived the Titanic sinking, but her husband did not. She ended up at the Chelsea Hotel distraught, later hanging herself rather than living another day without her beloved. The second ghost is that of a young woman named Nadia, who also took her own life at the hotel. She was raised at The Chelsea by wealthy parents, and, after becoming a young widow, returned to the property to rejoin her family. She found life unbearable and jumped out of a window and out onto 23rd Street.
Get spooked: Known as the Vain Ghost because she is said to always be looking at herself in the mirror, Mary haunts the western side of the building. Nadia, meanwhile, also haunts the halls of the building as well as 23rd Street. She appears in a long, wispy gown.
Haunting: Banff, Alberta
Ghost story: Two ghosts haunt the 724-key luxury, Accor-owned Fairmont Banff Springs that's known as the "Castle in the Rockies." Built in 1914, the hotel is said to have a bellhop who seemed to have never ended his shift. Sam McCauley worked as the hotel’s lead bellhop in the mid-1900s, but his ghost continues to aid guests today. The story goes that two women sought out help from the front desk when their room key didn't work, but no one was there to help. They returned to their room to find a bellhop — matching McCauley's description — ready to unlock their door and let them in. The second ghost at the Fairmont is known as The Bride. The unnamed ghost was set to get married in the 1920s shortly after the hotel opened. However, she mysteriously tripped at the top at the hotel's staircase and fell to her death. Her ghostly figure is rumored to billow like that of her gown.
Get spooked: McCauley haunts his old office — now a guest room — on the mezzanine floor, while The Bride can be found in the ballroom awaiting her first dance with her husband.
Haunting: Concord, Massachusetts
Ghost story: The 56-room Colonial Inn's history dates back to 1716 and played a role in the Revolutionary War. A local doctor, Dr. Timothy Minot, ran his practice out of the building, operating on many of the Continental Army soldiers who were injured in the Battles of Lexington and Concord. Unrelated to the war, a pair of ghosts — a man and woman, thought to be Henry David Thoreau and his aunt — and a young girl in a bonnet have been seen roaming the halls in 18th-century attire.
Get spooked: The two spots in the hotel that have the most paranormal activity are the Liberty Room, which operated as Minot's hospital, and room 24, his operating room.
Haunting: Denver, Colorado
Ghost story: With it's 130-year history, the 243-room Brown Palace Hotel and Spa, Autograph Collection has haunted lore on many of its floors. The hotel structure itself is considered creepy, with its right-triangular design — rumored to be rooted in Masonic geometry — and the 720-foot-deep artesian well at its center — thought to be a spiritual portal. The founding hotelier Henry C. Brown is known to linger around his old office. Floors eight and nine, which used to be apartment units, are known for haunted activities, including the deceased resident of suite 904, who was said to place phone calls to the switchboard long after her passing.
Get spooked: Each Halloween season, The Brown Palace leans into its spooky nature by offering daily haunted tours, and each ticket includes a cocktail of your choosing.
Haunting: Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Ghost story: Despite its vicinity to American Family Field, home of the MLB's Milwaukee Brewers, many visiting baseball players refuse to stay in the 307-room Pfister Hotel. The hotel, which opened originally in 1893, is known as "baseball's most haunted hotel" — with many current and former players having their own ghost stories to tell, from their belongings moving around in the night to unexplained noises and electrical activity. Charles Pfister, the hotel's founder and namesake, is thought to be at least one of the culprits of the paranormal mysteries at the hotel.
Get spooked: No specific room or floor at The Pfister stands out as being particularly haunted, but guests can take a ghost tour led by a local Milwaukee group to learn more about the hotel's haunted past, as well as hear ghost stories from the city as a whole.
Haunting: New Orleans, Louisiana
Ghost story: New Orleans has long been known as a spooky or eerie city, and the 226-key Le Pavillon, New Orleans, a Tribute Portfolio Hotel, has been known as the “Belle of New Orleans” since opening in 1907. The hotel embraces its history at every opportunity, and guests must occasionally also embrace a friendly ghost who comes with the property. Phillipe is known as a playful spirit, playing pranks on guests and hotel staff alike — tugging on bedsheets, missing housekeeping equipment and suitcases self-stacked on carts.
Get spooked: Phillipe is known to be most active on the hotel's third floor, but even without encountering a prank from the friendly ghost, guests can opt for the Boo’z & Beads package during spooky season. The special booking provides cocktails and snacks, two tickets to a walking ghost tour and a set of black, orange and purple beads. During October, the hotel's complimentary peanut butter and jelly sandwiches come pumpkin shaped.
DUHC&S | Strategic Hospitality Consulting & Advisory
We transform hospitality and tourism businesses through strategic solutions, operational efficiency, and comprehensive renovation . With over 40 years of experience working with brands like Hilton, Hyatt, Sheraton, and Sonesta , we enhance asset value and profitability through:
Business reengineering and renovation
Operational excellence and brand standards (GSI +90%)
Market penetration and commercial strategies
Key partnerships and disruptive innovation
Hotel openings and repositioning
Proven results :
✅ 54% GOP |
✅ +200% asset valuation growth
✅ Successful projects across 6 Latin American countries
🔹 Let's connect :
📩 Email: diurugeles@gmail.com
📱 WhatsApp: +57 3153259968
#DUHC&S #HospitalityConsulting #OperationalExcellence #Hotels #BusinessTransformation
Disclaimer
DUHC&S shares this information for educational and informational purposes only. The news articles reproduced here are sourced from public and recognized media outlets. We are not the original authors of this content but rather distributors of it. All credits go to the original sources cited in each article. If you are the legitimate owner of any material and wish to have it modified or removed, please contact us immediately at diurugeles@gmail.com , and we will address your request promptly.
Comments
Post a Comment