Comfort

Hilton Grand Vacations is acquiring Bluegreen Vacations for approximately $1.5 billion, expanding its membership base and resort portfolio. HEI Hotels & Resorts takes over management of the Renaissance Times Square hotel in New York. Hyatt is collaborating with Parks Hospitality Holdings to develop four new properties in Mexico, including the Park Hyatt Cancun and Grand Hyatt Mexico Santa Fe.

Earnings reports from various hotel and hospitality companies have mixed results, with Marriott International and Hyatt facing disappointment, while Park Hotels, Chatham Lodging Trust, Host Hotels, RLJ Lodging Trust, and Summit Hotel Properties pleased investors. Hyatt Hotels plans to double its brand footprint in Canada with 23 new hotels by 2026, including airport locations and Hyatt Centric and Hyatt House properties. Various hotel acquisitions, openings, and renovations are announced, including the launch of Pendry Tampa and Pendry Residences Tampa, and the renovation of L'Ermitage Beverly Hills. Selina Hospitality faces financial challenges and seeks to restructure its debt.

JP Morgan downgraded IHG Hotels & Resorts from Neutral to Underweight, favoring Premier Inn owner Whitbread in the European hotels sector. Canada has 275 hotel construction projects with 37,780 rooms in its pipeline, with 22 new projects announced in Q3. Ontario leads with 160 projects, and Toronto has the most projects with 61. A total of 16 new hotels opened in the first three quarters of 2023, with more expected in the last quarter and beyond. The latest GBTA Business Travel Outlook Poll reports that domestic business travel bookings have reached 75% of 2019 levels, while international bookings are at 70%. Spending on domestic business travel is at 77%, and international spend is at 74%.

Choice Hotels has urged Wyndham Hotels to consider a merger, but Wyndham has firmly declined any interest in the proposal. The chairman of Wyndham revealed they almost acquired Choice Hotels 20 years ago. The U.S. construction pipeline shows growth, with over 5,700 projects and 672,000 rooms, driven by a strong upper midscale chain scale presence. Renovation and conversion projects are on the rise, and new hotel openings are expected to increase in the coming years. Several hotel and resort projects are underway, including Westin Washington, DC Downtown, Opry Entertainment Group's renovation in Austin, Four Seasons expanding its Private Retreats collection, and Tommy Bahama's debut resort in California. Additionally, new developments in Florida, Rhode Island, and Indiana are on the horizon.

Macau's Golden Week visitation exceeded expectations, with 769,000 people visiting in the first six days. RKM Enterprises opened Ramada by Wyndham Goa in North Goa with various amenities. Radisson Hotels Group plans to introduce its top luxury "Radisson Collection" in India and expand the Radisson RED brand in the country.

Stifel reduced Hyatt Hotels' target price to $115/share while maintaining a Hold rating. Pebblebrook Hotels warned of 3Q impacts due to storms in California and Florida, affecting same property RevPAR. U.S. Travel Association reports a federal government shutdown could cost the travel economy up to $140 million/day, causing negative consequences for air travel and travelers' plans.

Q2 '23 saw 14,572 global hotel projects. Luxury and upscale chains dominate, led by Hilton, Marriott, and IHG. Urban hotels lag in post-pandemic recovery compared to resorts and suburban counterparts, with rate management playing a vital role. Notable new hotels, rebranding, and appointments are taking place, with Hilton, Riu Caribe, Choice Hotels, and Sonder making moves. London's Broadwick Soho hotel is set to open with unique additions.

DJIA, Nasdaq, and S&P 500 all experienced gains, while 10-year treasury yield decreased. Lodging stocks surged, led by lodging REITs AINC and ABNB, potentially narrowing the gap between NAV and stock prices. Lodging Dynamics Hospitality Group takes over management of Hilton Garden Inn and Homewood Suites in Los Angeles. Manhattan's Park Lane Hotel sold to Qatar's sovereign wealth fund. Wingate by Wyndham near LAX sold to Greens Group. IHG announces new Crowne Plaza in Saint John, New Brunswick. Kintetsu Group plans new hotel in Plano, Texas. Choice Hotels breaks ground on Cambria Hotel in East Tampa, Florida. Evans' Tempo by Hilton project falls apart. Philadelphia's former Family Court building to be transformed into a boutique hotel with an African American Museum nearby. East Bay Resort rebrands as Salterra Resort and Spa in Turks and Caicos after major renovation.

Major indices, including DJIA, Nasdaq, and the S&P 500, experienced significant drops. BHR reached a new low, and Bernstein and B.Riley adjusted ratings and price targets for several key hotels. Hotel Transactions & Development**: Numerous hotel properties underwent ownership changes, refinancing, or development, with notable mentions like the Delta Hotels by Marriott New York Times Square and the Four Seasons Private Residences Las Vegas nearing completion. Aimbridge Hospitality strengthened its team, Melia Hotels announced multiple openings in Mexico, and Selina Hospitality launched a new location in Evia, Greece.

Last week BP plc completed the acquisition of TravelCenter of America Inc . Service Properties Trust received $379.3 million in cash as part of the transaction. Sonder Holdings was cut to Perform from Outperform by Oppenheimer and InterContinental Hotels Group was upgraded to Neutral from Sell by Redburn. The Baird/STR Hotel Stock Index rose 1.4% in April from March. The Hotel Brand sub-index rose 2.5% from March while the Hotel REIT sub-index was down -2.6%.