Hilton US to Buy Hilton UK

Scotsman.com Business - Media & Leisure - October 15, 2005

HILTON Group, the hotel and gambling operator, confirmed yesterday it is in advanced talks with Hilton Hotels Corporation (HHC) of the US about a GBP3.6 billion sale of its hotel business, in a deal that would see it split from Ladbrokes, the UK bookmaker the group owns.

HHC, which was founded in 1919 by Barron Hilton, sold the rights to the Hilton brand outside the US in 1964. Ladbrokes, Britain's biggest bookmaker, bought Hilton in 1987, dropping the Ladbrokes name in favour of Hilton after buying the hotel and casino operator Stakis in 1998.

Hilton Group, led by chief executive David Michels, is currently also in talks with Royal Bank of Scotland, among others, over the sale of 18 hotels in the UK in a GBP400 million-plus sale and manage-back deal and further such disposals are inevitable.

Included in that group are Dunkeld House, Edinburgh Airport and the Treetops in Aberdeen, and a spokesman said yesterday that those are likely to be sold separately in a sell-and lease back deal, before any overall sell-off to the US group.

Hilton Group has more than 400 hotels - 70 of which are in the UK - under the Hilton and Scandic brands in 80 countries. HHC owns, manages or franchises more than 2,300 hotels under such brands as Hilton, Conrad, Doubletree, Embassy Suites and Hampton Inn brands.

Shares in Hilton Group soared 13.4 percent yesterday as details of the talks emerged, ending at 345.5p. Sphere: Related Content