Hilton Issues Debt to Buy Out Part of Stake Held by China’s HNA
Photo Credit: The Hilton Amsterdam Hotel is pictured in this photo from 2016. The company reported strong first-quarter earnings Thursday. Flickr / DennisM2
Skift Take
The move resolves uncertainty about the HNA investment as Hilton positions itself to take advantage of strong economic trends.
Hilton Worldwide repurchased 16.5 million shares of its stock for $1.17 billion from China's HNA Group this month, as HNA finished divesting its 26 percent stake in the company.
Hilton issued $1.5 billion of debt in April, using a portion of the proceeds for the stock repurchase from HNA, which earlier this month said it would sell its Hilton stake. HNA separately sold 66 million shares of Hilton stock as a public offering.
HNA, which has invested in a variety of global travel and hospitality companies, has been selling assets under orders from the Chinese government. “With this offering, they have now fully exited their investment in Hilton,” Hilton CEO Christopher Nassetta said during an investor call Thur
