Huazhu Group Limited (NASDAQ:HTHT) Signals Short-Term Weakness Despite Strong Profitability

Robust margins and a large cash position contrast with fading technical momentum and elevated leverage, creating pressure on near-term price action. Operational growth remains visible, but momentum indicators point to a pullback risk in the coming weeks.

Recent News

On November 5, 2025 the company scheduled its third-quarter 2025 earnings release for November 17, 2025. On November 17, 2025 H World Group reported Q3 2025 results showing revenue of RMB7.0 billion, adjusted EBITDA of about RMB2.5 billion and continued network expansion including roughly 749 new hotels; the company highlighted strong growth in manachised and franchised revenue. On January 7, 2026 an analyst house adjusted its rating to a hold and published revised price-target commentary.

Technical Analysis

Directional indicators: ADX at 16.06 indicates no established trend, while DI+ at 19.5 has peak-and-reversed and DI- at 20.74 has dip-and-reversed; those DI moves imply directional pressure toward the downside and reduce the probability of sustained upside continuation relative to current valuation.

MACD shows a peak-and-reversal with MACD at 0.19 beneath the signal line at 0.52; momentum has rolled over and the indicator points to decreasing bullish momentum versus the recent price plateau.

MRO stands at 17.45 and is positive but decreasing; the positive reading indicates price sits above the model target and, given the falling MRO, suggests mean reversion pressure that favors a near-term decrease toward fair-value references embedded in the valuation.

RSI equals 57.6 and is decreasing; the oscillator no longer supports fresh upside extension and aligns with other momentum measures indicating eroding short-term strength.

Price vs moving averages and cloud: the last close of $48.17 sits below the 20‑day average ($49.04) and below short-term EMA peaks that have reversed, while remaining above the 200‑day average ($38.87); that profile favors longer-term strength but near-term consolidation or pullback toward the 20‑50 day band.

Bands, volatility and volume: Bollinger bands compress modestly (upper ~ $50.23, lower ~ $47.86) and 1‑day volume exceeded the 10‑day average, indicating episodic trading interest but low realized volatility; the technical set-up points to a contained downward correction rather than a trend breakout.

 


Fundamental Analysis

Profitability and margins: EBIT of $2,229,000,000 and EBITDA of $2,548,000,000 produce an EBIT margin of 32.02%, which sits above the industry peer mean of 26.54% and above the industry peer median of 24.46% while remaining inside the industry peer range. Quarterly change in EBIT margin declined by 7.27% QoQ, though YoY the EBIT margin expanded by 18.62%.

Top-line and growth: total revenue equals $6,961,000,000 with YoY revenue growth of 74.11% and a QoQ revenue contraction of 56.43%; the strong annual expansion contrasts with the quarter-to-quarter pullback and requires monitoring for persistence of revenue conversion into operating profits.

Cash flow and liquidity: operating cash flow reached $1,697,000,000 and free cash flow totaled $1,493,000,000, implying a free-cash-flow yield of 1.26%. Cash and short-term investments stand at $13,156,000,000, providing liquidity cushion, while the current ratio of 0.85 and quick ratio of 0.84 indicate working-capital pressure relative to near-term liabilities.

Leverage and coverage: total debt equals $37,161,000,000 with debt-to-equity of 3.13x and debt-to-EBITDA of 14.58x; interest coverage near 25.92x reflects strong earnings relative to interest expense, but leverage metrics materially exceed typical conservative ranges and rose year-over-year (debt-to-equity up ~41.5% YoY), increasing sensitivity to operational shocks.

Returns and efficiency: return on equity at 12.37% and return on assets at 2.29% show profitable capital deployment on an ROE basis while asset turnover remains low at 0.108 (asset turnover below the industry peer mean of 0.209), indicating capital intensity in the business model and scope for improved asset utilization.

Earnings and valuation signals: reported EPS $4.76 matched the estimate ($4.76) with an EPS surprise of 0.10%. Trailing P/E equals 8.09 while forward P/E sits near 69.23, reflecting a gap between trailing profitability and muted forward earnings expectations embedded in consensus forecasts; WMDST values the stock as over‑valued based on the current set of cash flow, leverage and forward earnings metrics.

MOST-RECENT QUARTERLY REPORT
REPORT PERIOD ENDING: 2025-09-30
REPORT DATE: 2025-11-17
NEXT REPORT DATE: 2026-02-16
CASH FLOW  Begin Period Cash Flow 10.5 B
 Operating Cash Flow 1.7 B
 Capital Expenditures -204.00 M
 Change In Working Capital -240.00 M
 Dividends Paid -1.77 B
 Cash Flow Delta -3.25 B
 End Period Cash Flow 7.3 B
 
INCOME STATEMENT REVENUE
 Total Revenue 7.0 B
 Forward Revenue 2.2 B
COSTS
 Cost Of Revenue 4.1 B
 Depreciation 319.0 M
 Depreciation and Amortization 319.0 M
 Research and Development
 Total Operating Expenses 4.9 B
PROFITABILITY
 Gross Profit 2.9 B
 EBITDA 2.5 B
 EBIT 2.2 B
 Operating Income 2.0 B
 Interest Income 60.0 M
 Interest Expense 86.0 M
 Net Interest Income -26.00 M
 Income Before Tax 2.1 B
 Tax Provision 648.0 M
 Tax Rate 30.238 %
 Net Income 1.5 B
 Net Income From Continuing Operations 1.5 B
EARNINGS
 EPS Estimate 4.76
 EPS Actual 4.76
 EPS Difference 0.00
 EPS Surprise 0.1 %
 Forward EPS 0.60
 
BALANCE SHEET ASSETS
 Total Assets 63.6 B
 Intangible Assets 10.7 B
 Net Tangible Assets 1.2 B
 Total Current Assets 15.5 B
 Cash and Short-Term Investments 13.2 B
 Cash 7.1 B
 Net Receivables 972.0 M
 Inventory 61.0 M
 Long-Term Investments 1.6 B
LIABILITIES
 Accounts Payable 915.0 M
 Short-Term Debt 6.0 B
 Total Current Liabilities 18.3 B
 Net Debt
 Total Debt 37.2 B
 Total Liabilities 51.5 B
EQUITY
 Total Equity 11.9 B
 Retained Earnings 2.4 B
VALUATION & PER-SHARE METRICS EQUITY & PER-SHARE METRICS
 Book Value Per-Share 3.86
 Shares Outstanding 3.077 B
 Revenue Per-Share 2.26
VALUATION
 Market Capitalization 118.5 B
 Enterprise Value 142.5 B
 Enterprise Multiple 55.927
Enterprise Multiple QoQ 9.087 %
Enterprise Multiple YoY 12.493 %
Enterprise Multiple IPRWA high: 189.281
mean: 77.704
median: 68.864
HTHT: 55.927
low: -31.078
 EV/R 20.472
CAPITAL STRUCTURE
 Asset To Equity 5.349
 Asset To Liability 1.233
 Debt To Capital 0.758
 Debt To Assets 0.585
Debt To Assets QoQ 0.29 %
Debt To Assets YoY 3966.273 %
Debt To Assets IPRWA high: 1.606
median: 0.734
mean: 0.718
HTHT: 0.585
low: 0.003
 Debt To Equity 3.128
Debt To Equity QoQ 0.651 %
Debt To Equity YoY 4154.665 %
Debt To Equity IPRWA high: 13.542
HTHT: 3.128
mean: -0.337
median: -1.275
low: -13.223
PRICE-BASED VALUATION
 Price To Book (P/B) 9.975
Price To Book QoQ 15.781 %
Price To Book YoY 10.108 %
Price To Book IPRWA high: 22.128
HTHT: 9.975
median: 0.913
mean: -0.955
low: -22.92
 Price To Earnings (P/E) 8.091
Price To Earnings QoQ 2.706 %
Price To Earnings YoY -76.239 %
Price To Earnings IPRWA high: 357.224
mean: 104.776
median: 93.318
HTHT: 8.091
low: -85.409
 PE/G Ratio 0.66
 Price To Sales (P/S) 17.023
Price To Sales QoQ 4.482 %
Price To Sales YoY -0.218 %
Price To Sales IPRWA high: 30.539
median: 18.759
mean: 17.558
HTHT: 17.023
low: 0.325
FORWARD MULTIPLES
Forward P/E 69.233
Forward PE/G 5.645
Forward P/S 63.437
EFFICIENCY OPERATIONAL
 Operating Leverage 0.054
ASSET & SALES
 Asset Turnover Ratio 0.108
Asset Turnover Ratio QoQ 6.645 %
Asset Turnover Ratio YoY 4.831 %
Asset Turnover Ratio IPRWA high: 0.723
mean: 0.209
median: 0.165
HTHT: 0.108
low: 0.056
 Receivables Turnover 7.658
Receivables Turnover Ratio QoQ 1.295 %
Receivables Turnover Ratio YoY 1.221 %
Receivables Turnover Ratio IPRWA high: 44.676
mean: 9.56
HTHT: 7.658
median: 2.76
low: 1.042
 Inventory Turnover 66.049
Inventory Turnover Ratio QoQ 5.622 %
Inventory Turnover Ratio YoY 7.792 %
Inventory Turnover Ratio IPRWA HTHT: 66.049
high: 62.262
median: 36.65
mean: 32.856
low: 0.468
 Days Sales Outstanding (DSO) 11.916
CASH CYCLE
 Cash Conversion Cycle Days (CCC) -7.942
Cash Conversion Cycle Days QoQ 3.595 %
Cash Conversion Cycle Days YoY -16.811 %
Cash Conversion Cycle Days IPRWA high: 77.037
mean: 4.232
median: 4.037
HTHT: -7.942
low: -73.834
CAPITAL DEPLOYMENT
 Cash Conversion Ratio -2.506
 CapEx To Revenue -0.029
 CapEx To Depreciation -0.639
 
CAPITAL, LIQUIDITY & COVERAGE CAPITAL STRUCTURE
 Total Capital 12.6 B
 Net Invested Capital 18.6 B
 Invested Capital 18.6 B
 Net Tangible Assets 1.2 B
 Net Working Capital -2.78 B
LIQUIDITY
 Cash Ratio 0.719
 Current Ratio 0.848
Current Ratio QoQ 4.919 %
Current Ratio YoY -3.286 %
Current Ratio IPRWA high: 3.125
mean: 1.013
median: 1.0
HTHT: 0.848
low: 0.031
 Quick Ratio 0.845
Quick Ratio QoQ 4.922 %
Quick Ratio YoY -3.107 %
Quick Ratio IPRWA high: 3.071
median: 0.991
mean: 0.946
HTHT: 0.845
low: 0.027
COVERAGE & LEVERAGE
 Debt To EBITDA 14.584
 Cost Of Debt 0.16 %
 Interest Coverage Ratio 25.919
Interest Coverage Ratio QoQ 6.291 %
Interest Coverage Ratio YoY 14.763 %
Interest Coverage Ratio IPRWA high: 37.175
HTHT: 25.919
mean: 5.749
median: 5.363
low: -5.084
 Operating Cash Flow Ratio 0.095
TIMING / LIQUIDITY
 Days Payables Outstanding (DPO) 21.353
DIVIDENDS
 Dividend Coverage Ratio 0.829
 Dividend Payout Ratio 1.206
 Dividend Rate 0.58
 Dividend Yield 0.015
PERFORMANCE GROWTH
 Asset Growth Rate -1.894 %
 Revenue Growth 8.326 %
Revenue Growth QoQ -56.431 %
Revenue Growth YoY 74.111 %
Revenue Growth IPRWA high: 15.034 %
HTHT: 8.326 %
median: 1.195 %
mean: 1.054 %
low: -13.106 %
 Earnings Growth 12.264 %
Earnings Growth QoQ -82.719 %
Earnings Growth YoY -116.696 %
Earnings Growth IPRWA high: 114.563 %
HTHT: 12.264 %
mean: 5.168 %
median: 0.94 %
low: -175.0 %
MARGINS
 Gross Margin 41.646 %
Gross Margin QoQ 0.082 %
Gross Margin YoY 1.506 %
Gross Margin IPRWA high: 86.593 %
mean: 42.235 %
HTHT: 41.646 %
median: 40.094 %
low: 8.241 %
 EBIT Margin 32.021 %
EBIT Margin QoQ -7.272 %
EBIT Margin YoY 18.618 %
EBIT Margin IPRWA high: 52.4 %
HTHT: 32.021 %
mean: 26.542 %
median: 24.455 %
low: -25.213 %
 Return On Sales (ROS) 29.421 %
Return On Sales QoQ 5.797 %
Return On Sales YoY 8.987 %
Return On Sales IPRWA high: 47.382 %
HTHT: 29.421 %
mean: 27.167 %
median: 24.789 %
low: -27.119 %
CASH FLOW
 Free Cash Flow (FCF) 1.5 B
 Free Cash Flow Yield 1.26 %
Free Cash Flow Yield QoQ -46.588 %
Free Cash Flow Yield YoY -6.667 %
Free Cash Flow Yield IPRWA high: 10.115 %
mean: 1.377 %
HTHT: 1.26 %
median: 1.118 %
low: -12.37 %
 Free Cash Growth -39.555 %
Free Cash Growth QoQ -106.314 %
Free Cash Growth YoY 46.668 %
Free Cash Growth IPRWA high: 271.747 %
mean: 51.699 %
median: 29.31 %
HTHT: -39.555 %
low: -516.758 %
 Free Cash To Net Income 1.016
 Cash Flow Margin 24.953 %
 Cash Flow To Earnings 1.182
VALUE & RETURNS
 Economic Value Added 0.03
 Return On Assets (ROA) 2.289 %
Return On Assets QoQ -6.342 %
Return On Assets YoY 11.932 %
Return On Assets IPRWA high: 8.233 %
mean: 2.997 %
median: 2.639 %
HTHT: 2.289 %
low: -8.455 %
 Return On Capital Employed (ROCE) 4.926 %
 Return On Equity (ROE) 0.124
Return On Equity QoQ -2.676 %
Return On Equity YoY 17.84 %
Return On Equity IPRWA high: 0.405
HTHT: 0.124
mean: 0.009
median: -0.016
low: -0.352
 DuPont ROE 12.225 %
 Return On Invested Capital (ROIC) 8.375 %
Return On Invested Capital QoQ 0.528 %
Return On Invested Capital YoY -144.336 %
Return On Invested Capital IPRWA high: 14.004 %
HTHT: 8.375 %
mean: 6.734 %
median: 6.625 %
low: -1.956 %

Six-Week Outlook

Momentum indicators and the MRO point to higher probability of a short-term pullback or consolidation from current levels as momentum has rolled over and price traded below short-term averages. The larger cash balance and strong trailing margins cap downside severity, and the 200‑day average provides a structural floor well below the present price. Expect range-bound action with downward bias while DI/MACD momentum remains negative and price stays beneath the 20‑day average; traders should watch for reversal confirmation from rising DI+ or a MACD re-acceleration before anticipating renewed upward conviction.

About Huazhu Group Limited

H World Group Limited (NASDAQ:HTHT), formerly known as Huazhu Group Limited, develops a comprehensive portfolio of hotel brands catering to diverse market segments. Based in Shanghai, China, the company has expanded significantly since its inception in 2005, establishing a robust presence across the People’s Republic of China and internationally. H World Group manages a vast network of leased, owned, manachised, and franchised hotels, appealing to both budget travelers and luxury clientele. The company’s brand lineup includes domestic names such as HanTing Hotel, JI Hotel, and Crystal Orange Hotel, alongside international brands like Ibis and Novotel. H World Group emphasizes quality and customer satisfaction, continuously refining its offerings to align with guest expectations and industry trends. The rebranding to H World Group Limited in June 2022 underscores the company’s global ambitions and diversified brand strategy. With a commitment to delivering exceptional hospitality experiences, H World Group dedicates itself to creating welcoming environments for travelers worldwide. The company’s ongoing growth strategy focuses on enhancing value and operational excellence across its hotel properties.



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