Citing business declines and uncertainties related to “Operation Iraqi Freedom,” Hilton Hotels Corporation (NYSE:HLT) today revised the first quarter and full year 2003 guidance it provided on January 27, 2003.
The company said its first quarter 2003 estimates now anticipate a revenue per available room (RevPAR) decline of approximately 4 percent at its comparable owned hotels, with diluted earnings per share of break-even to $.01. This includes: 1) a pre-tax charge (required by current SEC guidance) of approximately $.03 per share related to the impairment of certain public company equity securities held by the company, and 2) a $.01 benefit from utilization of tax loss carryforwards.
For full year 2003, the company now anticipates a RevPAR decline of 1 to 2 percent at its comparable owned hotels, and diluted earnings per share in the high $.30 range.
While the company provided revised guidance for the quarter and full year, it noted that visibility remains extremely low, that the new estimates remain subject to change and could be further impacted by world events.
Hilton will report first quarter 2003 results on Wednesday, April 23, 2003.
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