The winning streak for the DJIA ended with a 237-point drop today while Nasdaq was down 77, the S&P 500 fell 29 points, and the 10-year treasury yield surged .16 to close at a yield of 4.01%. Lodging stocks were mixed. MAR traded up to a new high, and SOHO was up 8%.
Wyndham reported a slight beat, and while the debate is whether this was just because expectations were lowered, investors bid the stock up despite all the worries, so that is always a good vote of confidence. The big positives included their development pipeline rising to 228,000 rooms with 179 new contracts for legacy brands. The 60 new ECHO Suites deals were signed in July. They will be in the 3Q pipeline. WH bought back $109 million worth of stock in 2Q, and their board of directors increased the repurchase authorization by $400 million. 2023 guidance was unchanged.
Accor raised its annual profit outlook even though it just disclosed it a month ago. They beat their half-year EBITDA guidance but were a tad below analyst expectations even as EBITDA more than doubled year over year. RevPAR was up 51% in the Middle East, Asia, and the Pacific region.
STR reported U.S. lodging data for the week ended July 22. RevPAR rose 2% year over year.
Senators Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn. and Jerry Moran, R-Kan. are introducing a bill that would crack down on what they call hidden resort fees for hotel stays. The bill, called the Hotel Fees Transparency Act, would establish federal guidelines for pricing transparency that have, up until now, been largely voluntary. The legislation would require anyone advertising a hotel room or a short-term rental to clearly show upfront the final price a customer would pay to book lodging. It would make the Federal Trade Commission responsible for pursuing violations, plus state attorneys general could also bring civil action for violations. Obviously, organizations like the American Hotel and Lodging Association and American Gaming Association are against this.
Pursuant to our June 15, 2023 report, Asset World Corp Public Company Limited received approval at an Extraordinary General Meeting of Shareholders to acquire the shares of Hotel Plaza Athenee New York. AWC will first acquire 18% of the shares in Hotel Plaza Athenee New York at a value of THB 1.402 billion and will acquire the remaining shares of 82% within 10 years. Under this investment, AWC will receive all development profits and benefit from the ability to use the Plaza Athenee brand for future projects and the growth of the Plaza Athenee brand once those projects are operating. This investment will create synergy value by enhancing AWC’s portfolio by developing Plaza Athenee Nobu Hotel and Spa New York and The Plaza Athenee Nobu Hotel and Spa Bangkok.
A hotel under construction in North Augusta, South Carolina, has pushed back its grand-opening date. Tru by Hilton North Augusta announced November 9 as the day the four-story hotel will open. Meybohm Commercial Properties first announced plans for the hotel in 2016 as part of its Walnut Village development. In addition to the hotel, developers plan to erect townhomes and retail space.
Owners of the Cambria Napa Valley hotel and its sister property in Rohnert Park, California, face a significant financial challenge – an $80.4 million foreclosure. Unless the foreclosure is resolved, the Napa property owned by Pacific Hotel Napa LLC and Pacific Hotel Sonoma LLC will be auctioned off to the highest bidder at the Napa County Courthouse on August 8. Both the Cambria Napa and Sonoma hotels were developed by Stratus Development.
Canyon Ranch announced the Canyon Ranch-VICI Growth partnership with VICI Properties, an experiential-focused real estate investment trust, aiming to expand the reach of Canyon Ranch’s integrative wellness offerings across North America and beyond. The announcement comes as Canyon Ranch set its sights on Texas as the first location to debut both a destination resort and Canyon Ranch Wellness Clubs within one market. The inaugural Wellness Club opens this fall in Fort Worth, with a Houston location in the summer of 2024, and the Canyon Ranch Austin resort opens in 2025. The two Canyon Ranch Wellness Clubs in development in Fort Worth and Houston will be membership-based only. They will include state-of-the-art fitness, luxury spa facilities, lounges, and coworking spaces.
HayMax Capital announced that after years of planning, followed y construction, the 68-room boutique hotel MOLLIE Aspen is on track to open in December. The hotel’s culinary program is led by Gin & Luck and consists of a lobby bar and restaurant and an all-day café. Set atop MOLLIE’s top floor is a rooftop pool and bar that transforms into a speakeasy by night.
Outrigger Resorts & Hotels finalized its acquisition of the iconic Ka’anapali Beach Hotel. The 11-acre, 432-room property is now rebranded as Outrigger Ka’anapali Beach Resort. The property’s HuiHui restaurant officially closed operations on Tuesday. Outrigger announced that Maui Brewing Co. will be the primary restaurant and is set to open later this summer.
Mint House announced the Mint House Downtown Washington D.C. is set to open in early 2025. Altus Realty, who led the acquisition of the property in 2022, will convert an existing 11-story former office building into 85 high-end apartment-style flexible rental units to be operated by Mint House. Construction is scheduled to begin in November 2023. The transaction marks Mint House’s first foray into Downtown Washington, D.C. The property will have an onsite fitness facility, a dedicated meeting space, and a café.
The Benson Hotel and Faculty Club’s grand opening on July 18, 2023, in Aurora, Colorado marked as the new hospitality center for the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus in Aurora. The Benson Hotel, a Preferred Hotel & Resorts member, is adjacent to the Fitzsimmons Innovation Community. Olympia Hotel Management will operate the hotel which Aimco developed.
The Sunset Beach, North Carolina, town council approved a plan to build a new 150-room hotel, close to 450 short-term rental spaces, and a new business community. One hundred twenty-five of the short-term rentals could be built in the first year. Other developments in the Sea Trail area will include a new spa at Sea Trail’s pool area, two new single-family home developments totaling 142 units, and two townhome communities totaling 115 units. Another part of the plan will be the reopening of the Sea Trail Convention Center, which has been closed since 2018. The project is being led by Riptide Builders and the local golf course booking company Golf Trek.
GreenLake Asset Management LLC has funded a $33,650,000 refinance and construction loan for The Ridge in Bend, Oregon. The mixed-use development will feature condominiums, retail, and both Hyatt and Marriottbranded hotels.
Newmark Lodging Capital Markets arranged the sale and financing of the DoubleTree Resort Paradise Valley – Scottsdale, a 378-key hotel in Scottsdale, Arizona. Newmark represented the seller and procured Global Hospitality Investment Group as the buyer. The DoubleTree Resort Paradise Valley – Scottsdale offers four food and beverage outlets, 40,000 square feet of flexible indoor and outdoor meeting space, two pools, a tennis court, a fitness center, and a business center.
HVS Brokerage & Advisory announced the sale of the 68-key Holiday Inn Express Kenedy in Kenedy, Texas. Monarch Group Hotels purchased the property from KJ Texas Properties LLC.
Choice Hotels International, Inc. announced that all nine Radisson Hotels Americas brands, including Radisson Blue, Radisson, and Country Inn & Suites, are now available to be booked on ChoiceHotels.com. This adds nearly 600 hotels to its central reservation system ahead of schedule, and less than a year since its acquisition of Radisson Americas closed. Choice also announced the successful integration of the Radisson Rewards Americas loyalty program into the Choice Privileges program.
Europe Highlights
IHG Hotels & Resorts announced voco Zeal Exeter Science Park in partnership with Zeal Hotels. This follows the signing of a landmark exclusivity agreement between IHG and Zeal. Scheduled to open in 2024 in Exeter, U.K.,voco Zeal Exeter Science Park will be the first lifecycle net zero carbon hotelfor both businesses.
Personnel Moves
HREC Investment Advisors announced that Mark Morris has joined the firm as Senior Vice President in the Washington D.C. office. Before joining HREC, Morris was Chief Investment Officer at Frontier Development & Hospitality Group LLC.
