MCLEAN, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. ("Hilton" or the "Company") (NYSE: HLT) today reported its fourth quarter and full year 2022 results. Highlights include:

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230209005067/en/

• Diluted EPS was $1.21 for the fourth quarter and $4.53 for the full year, exceeding the high end of guidance

• Diluted EPS, adjusted for special items, was $1.59 for the fourth quarter and $4.89 for the full year, exceeding the high end of guidance

• Net income was $333 million for the fourth quarter and $1,257 million for the full year, exceeding the high end of guidance

• Adjusted EBITDA was $740 million for the fourth quarter and $2,599 million for the full year, exceeding the high end of guidance

• System-wide comparable RevPAR increased 24.8 percent and 42.5 percent, on a currency neutral basis, for the fourth quarter and full year, respectively, compared to the same periods in 2021

• System-wide comparable RevPAR increased 7.5 percent and decreased 1.3 percent, on a currency neutral basis, for the fourth quarter and full year, respectively, compared to the same periods in 2019

• Approved 24,400 new rooms for development during the fourth quarter, bringing Hilton's development pipeline to 416,400 rooms as of December 31, 2022

• Added 17,700 rooms to Hilton's system in the fourth quarter, resulting in 48,300 net additional rooms in Hilton's system for the full year, contributing to net unit growth of 4.7 percent, with fourth quarter hotel openings modestly lagging prior expectations due to the ongoing COVID-19 environment in China

• Full year 2023 net unit growth is expected to be between 5.0 percent and 5.5 percent

• Repurchased 3.8 million shares of Hilton common stock during the fourth quarter, bringing total capital return, including dividends, to $542 million for the quarter and more than $1.7 billion for the full year

• Launched a new premium economy brand, Spark by Hilton, in January 2023

• Full year 2023 system-wide RevPAR is expected to increase between 4 percent and 8 percent on a comparable and currency neutral basis compared to 2022; full year net income is projected to be between $1,382 million and $1,454 million; full year Adjusted EBITDA is projected to be between $2,800 million and $2,900 million

• Full year 2023 capital return is projected to be between $1.7 billion and $2.1 billion

Overview

Christopher J. Nassetta, President & Chief Executive Officer of Hilton, said, "Our fourth quarter and full year results surpassed our expectations, with fourth quarter system-wide RevPAR meaningfully exceeding the same period in 2019 driven by growth across all segments. This marked the second consecutive quarter that RevPAR exceeded pre-pandemic levels. Positive momentum has continued into the new year with exciting growth opportunities ahead, including the continued expansion of our brand portfolio with the recent launch of our newest brand, Spark by Hilton."

For the three months and year ended December 31, 2022, system-wide comparable RevPAR increased 24.8 percent and 42.5 percent, respectively, compared to the same periods in 2021, due to increases in both occupancy and ADR. For the three months and year ended December 31, 2022 compared to the same periods in 2021, fee revenues increased 30 percent and 45 percent, respectively. For comparison to pre-pandemic results, system-wide comparable RevPAR for the three months and year ended December 31, 2022 increased 7.5 percent and decreased 1.3 percent, respectively, compared to the same periods in 2019, and fee revenues for both the three months and year ended December 31, 2022 exceeded the same periods in 2019.

For the three months ended December 31, 2022, diluted EPS was $1.21 and diluted EPS, adjusted for special items, was $1.59 compared to $0.52 and $0.72, respectively, for the three months ended December 31, 2021. Net income and Adjusted EBITDA were $333 million and $740 million, respectively, for the three months ended December 31, 2022, compared to $148 million and $512 million, respectively, for the three months ended December 31, 2021.

For the year ended December 31, 2022, diluted EPS was $4.53 and diluted EPS, adjusted for special items, was $4.89 compared to $1.46 and $2.08, respectively, for the year ended December 31, 2021. Net income and Adjusted EBITDA were $1,257 million and $2,599 million, respectively, for the year ended December 31, 2022, compared to $407 million and $1,629 million, respectively, for the year ended December 31, 2021.

Development

In the fourth quarter of 2022, Hilton opened 108 new hotels contributing 17,700 additional rooms to Hilton's system and achieved net unit growth of 15,100 rooms. During the full year 2022, Hilton opened 355 new hotels totaling 58,200 rooms and achieved net unit growth of 48,300 rooms. Hilton continued to achieve growth milestones during the fourth quarter, opening the 60,000th room under the Home2 Suites by Hilton brand and the 150,000th room under the DoubleTree by Hilton brand. Further, during the fourth quarter, Hilton opened the Waldorf Astoria Cancun, marking the Company's 200th hotel in the Caribbean and Latin America region.

As of December 31, 2022, Hilton's development pipeline totaled more than 2,820 hotels representing 416,400 rooms throughout 118 countries and territories, including 30 countries and territories where Hilton does not currently have any existing hotels. Additionally, of the rooms in the development pipeline, 205,400 of the rooms were under construction and 243,500 of the rooms were located outside the U.S.

In January 2023, Hilton launched Spark by Hilton, a premium economy brand that is dedicated to delivering thoughtful simplicity, reliable service, unexpected touches and consistent quality. Spark by Hilton leverages a conversion model approach to growth and had more than 200 hotels in various stages of negotiation as of February 3, 2023.

Balance Sheet and Liquidity

As of December 31, 2022, Hilton had $8.8 billion of long-term debt outstanding, excluding the deduction for deferred financing costs and discount, with a weighted average interest rate of 4.45 percent. Excluding all finance lease liabilities and other debt of Hilton's consolidated variable interest entities, Hilton had $8.6 billion of long-term debt outstanding with a weighted average interest rate of 4.44 percent and no scheduled maturities until May 2025. No debt amounts were outstanding under Hilton's $1.75 billion senior secured revolving credit facility (the "Revolving Credit Facility") as of December 31, 2022, which had an available borrowing capacity of $1.69 billion after considering $60 million of outstanding letters of credit. Total cash and cash equivalents were $1,286 million as of December 31, 2022, including $77 million of restricted cash and cash equivalents.

In January 2023, Hilton amended its credit agreement governing its Revolving Credit Facility to increase the borrowing capacity to $2.0 billion, $250 million of which is available in the form of letters of credit, and, based on the terms of the agreement, Hilton expects the extended maturity date to be January 2028. As of February 3, 2023, after considering the $60 million of letters of credit outstanding and no borrowings outstanding, Hilton had an available borrowing capacity on the Revolving Credit Facility of $1,940 million.

During the fourth quarter of 2022, Hilton repurchased 3.8 million shares of its common stock for a cost of $501 million and an average price per share of $131.36. During the year ended December 31, 2022, Hilton repurchased 12.3 million shares of its common stock for a cost of $1,608 million and an average price per share of $130.75. In November 2022, Hilton's board of directors authorized an additional $2.5 billion for share repurchases under its share repurchase program. Through February 3, 2023, since the inception of Hilton's stock repurchase program in March 2017, Hilton has repurchased approximately 53.8 million shares of its common stock for approximately $5.1 billion at an average price per share of $94.19. The amount remaining under Hilton's stock repurchase program is approximately $2,933 million.

In December 2022, Hilton paid a quarterly cash dividend of $0.15 per share of common stock, for a total of $41 million, bringing cash dividends for the full year to $123 million. In February 2023, Hilton's board of directors authorized a regular quarterly cash dividend of $0.15 per share of common stock to be paid on or before March 31, 2023 to holders of record of its common stock as of the close of business on February 28, 2023.

Outlook

Share-based metrics in Hilton's outlook include actual share repurchases to date, but do not include the effect of potential share repurchases hereafter.

Full Year 2023

• System-wide comparable RevPAR, on a currency neutral basis, is expected to increase between 4 percent and 8 percent compared to 2022.

• Diluted EPS is projected to be between $5.10 and $5.36.

• Diluted EPS, adjusted for special items, is projected to be between $5.42 and $5.68.

• Net income is projected to be between $1,382 million and $1,454 million.

• Adjusted EBITDA is projected to be between $2,800 million and $2,900 million.

• Contract acquisition costs and capital expenditures, excluding amounts indirectly reimbursed by third parties, are expected to be approximately $300 million.

• Capital return is projected to be between $1.7 billion and $2.1 billion.

• General and administrative expenses are projected to be between $390 million and $410 million.

• Net unit growth is expected to be between 5.0 percent and 5.5 percent.

First Quarter 2023

• System-wide comparable RevPAR, on a currency neutral basis, is expected to increase between 23 percent and 27 percent compared to the first quarter of 2022.

• Diluted EPS is projected to be between $1.00 and $1.06.

• Diluted EPS, adjusted for special items, is projected to be between $1.08 and $1.14.

• Net income is projected to be between $271 million and $287 million.

• Adjusted EBITDA is projected to be between $590 million and $610 million.

Conference Call

Hilton will host a conference call to discuss fourth quarter and full year 2022 results on February 9, 2023 at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time. Participants may listen to the live webcast by logging on to the Hilton Investor Relations website at https://ir.hilton.com/events-and-presentations. A replay and transcript of the webcast will be available within 24 hours after the live event at https://ir.hilton.com/financial-reporting.

Alternatively, participants may listen to the live call by dialing 1-888-317-6003 in the United States ("U.S.") or 1-412-317-6061 internationally using the conference ID 2954222. Participants are encouraged to dial into the call or link to the webcast at least fifteen minutes prior to the scheduled start time. A telephone replay will be available for seven days following the call. To access the telephone replay, dial 1-877-344-7529 in the U.S. or 1-412-317-0088 internationally using the conference ID 9082885.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These statements include, but are not limited to, statements related to the expectations regarding the recovery of the travel and hospitality industry from the coronavirus ("COVID-19") pandemic (the "pandemic"), the performance of Hilton's business, future financial results, liquidity and capital resources and other non-historical statements. In some cases, these forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "outlook," "believes," "expects," "potential," "continues," "may," "will," "should," "could," "seeks," "projects," "predicts," "intends," "plans," "estimates," "anticipates" or the negative version of these words or other comparable words. Such forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties including, among others, risks inherent to the hospitality industry, macroeconomic factors beyond Hilton's control, such as inflation, changes in interest rates and challenges due to labor shortages and supply chain disruptions, risks related to the impact of the pandemic, including as a result of new strains or variants of the virus and uncertainty of the acceptance and continued effectiveness of the COVID-19 vaccines, competition for hotel guests and management and franchise contracts, risks related to doing business with third-party hotel owners, performance of Hilton's information technology systems, growth of reservation channels outside of Hilton's system, risks of doing business outside of the U.S., risks associated with the Russian invasion of Ukraine and Hilton's indebtedness. Additional factors that could cause Hilton's results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements can be found under the sections entitled "Part I—Item 1A. Risk Factors" of Hilton's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021 and "Part II —Item 1A. Risk Factors" of Hilton's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended March 31, 2022, both of which are filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") and are accessible on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. Such factors may be updated from time to time in Hilton's periodic filings with the SEC, including Hilton's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022, which is expected to be filed with the SEC on or about the date of this press release. Accordingly, there are or will be important factors that could cause actual outcomes or results to differ materially from those indicated in these statements. These factors should not be construed as exhaustive and should be read in conjunction with the other cautionary statements that are included in this press release and in Hilton's filings with the SEC. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or review any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise, except as required by law.

Definitions

See the "Definitions" section for the definition of certain terms used within this press release, including within the schedules.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

The Company refers to certain financial measures that are not recognized under U.S. generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP") in this press release, including: net income (loss), adjusted for special items; diluted EPS, adjusted for special items; EBITDA; Adjusted EBITDA; Adjusted EBITDA margin; net debt; and net debt to Adjusted EBITDA ratio. See the schedules to this press release, including the "Definitions" section, for additional information and reconciliations of such non-GAAP financial measures, as well as the most comparable GAAP financial measure.

About Hilton

Hilton (NYSE: HLT) is a leading global hospitality company with a portfolio of 19 world-class brands comprising more than 7,100 properties and more than 1.1 million rooms, in 123 countries and territories. Dedicated to fulfilling its founding vision to fill the earth with the light and warmth of hospitality, Hilton has welcomed more than 3 billion guests in its more than 100-year history, earned a top spot on Fortune's 100 Best Companies to Work For list and been recognized as a global leader on the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices for six consecutive years. Hilton has introduced several industry-leading technology enhancements to improve the guest experience, including Digital Key Share, automated complimentary room upgrades and the ability to book confirmed connecting rooms. Through the award-winning guest loyalty program Hilton Honors, the more than 150 million members who book directly with Hilton can earn Points for hotel stays and experiences money can't buy. With the free Hilton Honors app, guests can book their stay, select their room, check in, unlock their door with a Digital Key and check out, all from their smartphone. Visit stories.hilton.com for more information, and connect with Hilton on facebook.com/hiltonnewsroom, twitter.com/hiltonnewsroom, linkedin.com/company/hilton, instagram.com/hiltonnewsroom and youtube.com/hiltonnewsroom.

____________

____________

____________

____________