North America

JP Morgan upgraded their rating on Accor to Neutral from Underweight with a price target of €30, up from €24.50. Hyatt Hotels Corporation  and  Mr & Mrs Smith  announced an agreement for a Hyatt affiliate to acquire Mr & Mrs Smith, a platform offering direct booking access to boutique hotels.

Wyndham Hotels & Resorts received a much better response to their earnings report than Hilton did yesterday. Pebblebrook Hotel Trust kicked off the Lodging REIT earning season with Hersha Hospitality . Hersha Hospitality revenue was in line, EBITDA was lower than expected.

Hilton kicked off earnings season with solid results. You could not get much better than Hilton’s with a solid beat. Travel + Leisure beat expectations, bought back $102 million worth of stock and gave out more in dividends than expected. The stock went down. Sonder has become the first of the SPACs that are either penny stocks or close to it, to receive a deficiency notice from their trading exchange.

The stock market experienced a decrease, with the Dow Jones Hotel & Lodging REITs Index down 2.3%. There were several hotel acquisitions, renovations, and new developments announced. There were also announcements of management changes, upgrades, and technology acquisitions in the hospitality industry.

According to the latest STR U.S. bubble chart update , for the four weeks ending April 15, recovery growth across a range of industry indicators took a small backstep, with occupancy falling from the prior month. Each of the four world regions showed a year-over-year decline in hotel construction activity , with Asia Pacific coming closest to its 2022 comparable, according to March 2023 pipeline data from STR. The Hospitality Asset Manager Association released the results of its Spring 2023 Industry Outlook Survey .

Truist gave their 1Q lodging earnings preview . While they continue to see macro over micro with the main driver/wildcard coming from the economic impact of high interest rates and inflation, at a minimum they expect results to be in-line but more likely ahead. The Kayak Miami Beach hotel could be seized in a $13.68 million foreclosure lawsuit. The ART Hotel Denver, Curio Collection by Hilton announced the completion of its $3 million property-wide refresh to its 165 rooms and suites, 7,500 square feet of flexible meeting and event spaces, fitness center, private dining and public spaces.

Upper upscale hotels, the property types most associated with business travel, are well represented in the U.S. development pipeline . According to the American Customer Satisfaction Index Travel Study 2022-2023, satisfaction across all four industries measured, airlines, hotels, car rentals, and online travel agencies, is up . STR reported US lodging data for the week ended 4/15. US hotel RevPAR was up 8.6% year over year.

B of A Securities initiated coverage on Hilton Grand Vacations with a Neutral rating and $50 price target. OYO plans to expand its market presence in the U.S. with an addition of over 100 hotels in CY2023. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Park Hotels to $13 a share from $14 while maintaining their Equal Weight rating.

CBRE released its US Hotels State of the Union March 2023 Edition . Key takeaways include February marked nine consecutive months of easing inflation. Baird said that with industry wide March RevPAR being better than expected, it de-risked 1Q23 earnings a bit, and the trade is likely higher into the earnings prints. Jefferies said they continue to believe Host Hotels is best-positioned among peers to generate growth and expanding cash flows irrespective of macro challenges and has yet to receive valuation credit.