Marriott and Hilton added thousands of hotel rooms in 2023 amid travel rebound

By Steve Gelsi

Shares of Marriott International Inc. and Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. rose Monday after the companies said they grew their hotel room footprints as travel continued its rebound in 2023 from the downturn in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

As the larger of the two giant hotel chains by market cap, Marriott (MAR) said its net rooms increased by 4.7% to just under 1.6 million in 2023. Its development pipeline jumped 15% to 573,000 rooms, a record.

Net rooms grew 4.7% to over 1.597 million and the company's development pipeline ended 2023 at a record 573,000 rooms, an increase of 15% from the previous year for the Bethesda, Md.-based company.

In the U.S. and Canada, Marriott signed a record 91,000 rooms including 37,000 from its licensing agreement with MGM Resorts International (MGM).

Marriott's stock rose 1.6% on Monday.

Hilton's stock (HLT) moved up by 0.6% after it said it opened 132 hotels and 24,000 rooms in the fourth quarter, which it described as the strongest development quarter in its 99-year history.

Hilton reiterated its net-unit-growth estimate of 5.5% to 6% in 2024, "with strong indications towards the higher end of the range based on the positive momentum we are seeing in signings and construction starts."

For the full year, Hilton reported 4.9% unit growth by opening 395 hotels and about 63,000 rooms.

The company's development pipeline marked a record 2023 with signings of about 1,000 hotels representing 130,000 rooms, up 45% from 2022 and "the prior year and "meaningfully ahead of pre-pandemic levels."

Hilton said its development pipeline is now the largest in its history with nearly 3,300 hotels, totaling more than 462,000 rooms.

The hotel company had more than 7,500 properties in 126 countries as of Dec. 31, and said it hosted more than 213 million travelers, a record.

On Friday, Hyatt Hotels Corp. (H) said it set a record for signings and its development pipeline, with 127,000 rooms.

Hyatt stock was up by 0.4% on Monday.

-Steve Gelsi

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01-22-24 1629ET

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