Since April, systemwide occupancy at Hilton Worldwide Holdings properties has increased month over month, according to the company's Q3 2020 results. The most notable recoveries were in Asia Pacific, the U.S. and Europe, with comparable hotel occupancy levels up approximately 32 percentage points, 32 percentage points and 31 percentage points, respectively, from April to September.
“Our third-quarter results show meaningful improvement over the second quarter,” said Christopher J. Nassetta, president and CEO of Hilton. “The vast majority of our properties around the world are now open and have gradually begun to recover from the limitations that the COVID-19 pandemic has imposed on the travel industry, with occupancy increasing more than 20 percentage points from the second quarter. While a full recovery will take time, we are well positioned to capture rising demand and execute on growth opportunities.”
By the Numbers
For the three and nine months ended Sept. 30, systemwide comparable revenue per available room decreased 59.9 percent and 55.9 percent, respectively, compared to the prvious-year periods, due to both occupancy and ADR decreases.
Management fee and franchise and licensing fee revenues decreased 53 percent and 51 percent during the three and nine months ended Sept. 30, respectively, compared to the previous-year periods. The company blames the decreases on the COVID-19 pandemic and the related reduction in global travel and tourism, which required the complete or partial suspensions of hotel operations at approximately 20 percent of Hilton's properties at some point during the nine months ended Sept. 30.
The company also noted that, as of Nov. 2, 97 percent of its systemwide properties are now open, up from 96 percent in Q2.
For the three months ended Sept. 30, net loss and adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization were $81 million and $224 million, respectively, compared to $290 million and $605 million, respectively, for the three months ended September 30, 2019.
For the nine months ended Sept. 30, net income (loss) and adjusted EBITDA were $(495) million and $638 million, respectively, compared to $710 million and $1,722 million, respectively, for the nine months ended Sept. 30, 2019.
In comparison, net loss was $432 million for the second quarter of 2020, while systemwide comparable RevPAR decreased 81 percent on a currency neutral basis in Q2 from the same period in 2019.
Development
In the third quarter of 2020, Hilton opened 133 new hotels totaling 17,100 rooms, and achieved net unit growth of over 14,800 rooms. Notable openings in the quarter included the Conrad Punta de Mita in Mexico and the Hilton Beijing Tongzhou in China, as well as the Motto by Hilton Washington DC City Center, the first hotel under the Motto by Hilton brand.
Notable additions to Hilton's development pipeline during the quarter included the Conrad Rabat Arzana in Morocco and the Waldorf Astoria Monarch Beach Resort & Club in California.
As of Sept. 30, Hilton's development pipeline totaled approximately 2,640 hotels consisting of more than 408,000 rooms throughout 120 countries and territories, including 33 countries and territories where Hilton does not currently have any open hotels. Additionally, of the rooms in the development pipeline, 237,000 rooms were located outside the U.S., and 217,000 rooms were under construction