Hilton Worldwide Holdings NYSE:HLT, a global hotel operator managing and franchising properties across multiple price categories, fell approximately 3.4% in Tuesday's regular-session trading as of 10:15 a.m. ET despite raising its 2026 room-revenue outlook. Hilton now expects revenue per available room, a measure combining occupancy and room rates, to increase between 3% and 3.5%. Its previous forecast called for growth between 2% and 3%.
Second-quarter revenue increased 6.5% to $3.34 billion, slightly exceeding analysts' estimate of $3.33 billion. Adjusted earnings reached $2.29 per share, compared with $2.20 one year earlier and matching market expectations. Revenue per available room increased across Hilton's luxury, mid-scale and budget operations. The FIFA World Cup held across the United States, Canada and Mexico supported tourism and hotel pricing, with Hilton expecting some benefit to continue during the third quarter.
Room revenue from the Middle East and Africa declined 29.5% as regional conflicts disrupted travel. Hilton also expects fourth-quarter performance to face unfavorable calendar changes and the U.S. midterm elections. The midpoint of the company's RevPAR forecast increased by 0.75 percentage point, while second-quarter revenue exceeded consensus by only about $10 million, indicating that the upgrade depends substantially on management's expectations for coming quarters. Investors may be weighing the World Cup benefit against regional weakness and the possibility that event-driven demand will moderate. Underlying travel trends after the World Cup could provide a clearer view of sustainable room-revenue growth.