Maine

Choice Hotels made an offer to acquire Wyndham Hotels and Resorts, which was rejected. The situation may lead to a proxy fight. Marriott and MGM's partnership launch delayed to early 2024 due to a cyber attack on MGM and the complexity of the integration, which includes the creation of the MGM Collection with Marriott Bonvoy. Hyatt introduces the Wellbeing Collective, offering tailored wellbeing experiences at 30+ hotels globally, with plans to expand in 2024.

DJIA down 37 points, Nasdaq up 207, S&P 500 up 30; 10-year treasury yield rises to 4.34%. Lodging stocks mixed, SLNA up 9%, BHR down -6%, VAC trades lower. Florida reports strong international visitor numbers, overseas travel up 21.8%, Canadian visitation up 81.1% in H1 2023. Florida sees 70.8 million annual visitors, leading post-pandemic recovery in overseas travelers. Grand Galvez hotel joins Marriott's Autograph Collection with elegant renovations. Aloft Chicago Schaumburg transforms former Holiday Inn into 119-room boutique hotel. IHG's Kimpton to open two boutique hotels in Mexico City. Hartsfield-Jackson Airport plans new administration building and mid-tier hotel. New hotel in Milwaukee's Deer District and upgraded Enclave at The Vendue opening in Charleston. US Real Estate Credit Holdings to purchase bankrupt Banyan Cay Resort.

MAR and HLT lodging stocks hit new highs, while several stock targets and ratings were adjusted. Q2 2023 shows a total construction pipeline of 552 projects/88,477 rooms in Latin America. Mexico leads with 213 projects/33,853 rooms. Marriott International dominates the franchise scene with 116 projects/18,733 rooms. Project MidX Studios is renamed StudioRes by MAR for the US and Canada market.

Hotel industry experiences mixed stock market performance, with DJIA rising while NASDAQ and S&P 500 show declines. Renovations and upgrades abound, with notable projects including the multimillion-dollar renovations of Houston Marriott South and Homewood Suites by Hilton New Orleans. Exciting developments on the horizon, such as the opening of Raffles Boston and the planned multimillion-dollar mixed-use project by Beck Ventures in Midtown Dallas.

The hospitality industry is experiencing optimism and cautiousness, with hotels considering divesting assets and anticipating a potential distressed sale boom. Hoteliers are optimistic about increasing demand, but face challenges such as high-interest rates, labor shortages, and decreased construction activity. The U.S. hotel forecast shows improvements in occupancy, ADR, and RevPAR, while hotels are offering incentives to combat staffing shortages. International visitor arrivals to the U.S. continue to rise, with Mexico and Canada leading the way.

Sotherly Hotels reported preliminary operating results for 1Q23 for their 10 wholly-owned properties. RevPAR was up 21.4% led by an 11.4% jump in occupancy. Tighter budgets, busy airports, and soaring prices are prompting a more frugal tourist to return . Even high-end travelers are pulling back on their vacation spending, Bloomberg reported. Lightstone announced the April 12 debut of the 37-story, 727-key Moxy & AC Hotels Downtown Los Angeles.

Kimpton’s first-ever resort in the Western Caribbean is officially opening this summer, with the debut of the new Kimpton Grand Roatan in the Bay Islands of Honduras . According to The Wall Street Journal,  Goldman Sachs  is investing between 150 million and 200 million euros in  three seaside resorts  in the northern region of  Halkidiki . Key International  completed the purchase of  The Perry Hotel  on the waterfront in  Key West, FL  as part of an ambitious expansion of its $2 billion portfolio.

According to STR , Phoenix’s hotel RevPAR is forecasted to reach $419 for February 10-12, which would be the second-highest level for a Super Bowl weekend . On Friday lodging stocks were lower. SOND was the biggest mover, down -8% while ABNB was down -5% on the day. White Lodging announced the renaming of its new Autograph Collection hotel in San Antonio, Texas , formerly known as The Otis Hotel .

Gordon Haskett downgraded Airbnb to Underperform from Hold. They lowered their price target to $87 from $94. The firm also cut their rating on Booking.com to Hold from Buy. STR reported US lodging data for the week ended 1/21. RevPAR was up 26.2% year over year while up 5.6% versus 2019. The DJIA  rose 9.88 points, or little change. Nasdaq fell 0.2%; S&P 500 was barely changed. The 10-year Treasury yield fell to 3.461%.

Lodging stocks were higher. SLNA topped the list with a 10% gain followed by AHT and VCSA, both up 6%. We start today’s newsletter on a sad note as many of you probably heard that Bruce White , the founder and chairman of White Lodging , passed away at the age of 70. Pebblebrook Hotel Trust gave a January operations update and include an update on 4Q preliminary results. Remember they roiled the Lodging REIT stocks when they preannounced weaker than expected 4Q results.