Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (HLT)

Hilton is one of the world's largest hospitality companies, founded in 1919 and operating 7,165 properties with 1,127,430 rooms across 123 countries and territories as of December 31, 2022. The company manages a premier portfolio of 22 brands spanning multiple chain scales: luxury brands (Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts, LXR Hotels & Resorts, Conrad Hotels & Resorts), lifestyle brands (Canopy by Hilton, Curio Collection, Tapestry Collection, Tempo by Hilton, Motto by Hilton), full-service brands (Signia by Hilton, Hilton Hotels & Resorts, DoubleTree by Hilton), focused-service brands (Hilton Garden Inn, Hampton by Hilton, Tru by Hilton), all-suites brands (Embassy Suites, Homewood Suites, Home2 Suites), a new premium economy brand (Spark by Hilton, launched January 2023), and a timeshare brand (Hilton Grand Vacations). Hilton operates through two reportable segments: management and franchise, which generates revenue from management/franchise fees charged to third-party owners and licensing fees from strategic partners including co-branded credit card providers; and ownership, which derives revenue primarily from room sales, food and beverage, and other services at consolidated owned and leased hotels.

The vast majority of the company's system (nearly all pipeline hotels) operates under asset-light management and franchise arrangements, with only 52 properties (17,612 rooms) wholly owned or leased. As of year-end 2022, Hilton's development pipeline included 2,821 hotels representing 416,400 rooms across 118 countries and territories, including 30 where Hilton currently has no existing hotels; 205,400 pipeline rooms were under construction and 243,500 were located outside the U.S. The company's Hilton Honors guest loyalty program, a key driver of repeat business and customer retention, had 152 million members as of December 31, 2022, a 19% increase year-over-year, with members earning points redeemable for stays and usable with strategic partners such as American Express, airlines, Amazon, and Lyft. While the COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted the hospitality industry beginning in 2020, most operating countries had eased or lifted travel restrictions by the end of 2022, and Hilton experienced a strong recovery, with comparable system-wide RevPAR in the third and fourth quarters of 2022 exceeding 2019 levels; net unit growth for 2022 was 4.7%.

Hilton competes against major global hospitality companies including Marriott, Hyatt, IHG, Four Seasons, Wyndham, and Accor across its various brand segments and chain scales.