Dalata Hotels sees revenue rise to €284.8m

Dalata Hotels has announced that its H1 revenues increased 29% to €284.8m (£244.1m). Its adjusted EBITDA also increased to €103m (£88.36m), up 24%. However, its profit before tax for the six month period dipped 3% to €50.3m (£43.15m) from €52m (£44.61m) as it said it dealt with the challenge of rising costs. RevPAR in H1 2023 rose to €109.42 (£93.79), compared with €88.61 (£75.95) in 2022, with an average room cost of €139.50 (£119.57) and occupancy of 78.4%. The hotel group has also declared an interim dividend of 4.0 cent per share (4p), representing dividend payment of c. €8.9m (£7.64m). Additionally, the company has secured two London owned hotels, adding 280 rooms to its UK portfolio for consideration of £97.7m (£83.81m). Both hotels commenced trading under Dalata in July 2023, growing its London room portfolio by 64%. Meanwhile, Maldron Hotel Shoreditch, London (157 rooms) is due to be completed in Q2 2024, bringing its London room portfolio to 876. Three further leased hotels (677 rooms) are under construction in Liverpool, Brighton, and Manchester, and are expected to open in Q2 2024. Looking ahead, the hotel group is “optimistic” for the remainder of the year and its future growth prospects. Dalata expects its ‘like-for-like’ group RevPAR is expected to be €140 (£120.1m) for the July/August period, an increase of 5% compared with the same period in 2022. Like-for-like RevPAR in July/August is also expected to be 5% ahead of 2022 levels in Dublin, 8% in Regional Ireland and 5% in the UK. Dermot Crowley, Dalata Hotel Group CEO, said: “Our performance year to date has been exceptional, thanks to all of our teams throughout the business, whose commitment and dedication are evident in the results announced today and in the continuous delivery of our ambitious growth strategy. “…The group has delivered a record set of financial results and reported excellent customer and employee satisfaction scores. We have responded effectively to the challenge of rising costs through cost and revenue management initiatives, a focus on reducing utility consumption and adopting innovation across all areas of the business. Our ongoing investment in consumer research ensures that customer insights are continuously used to inform and guide decisions, from hotel designs to the food and beverage offerings we serve our customers.” He added: “As a result of these efforts, we achieved a ‘like for like’ hotel EBITDAR margin of 41.4% in H1 2023, exceeding the equivalent H1 2019 margin by 1.0%. As a company, we have taken a reasonable approach to pricing; our average room rate1 in Dublin during the four-month period from May to August was €177 (£151.84m). We remain mindful that the current cost environment is highly dynamic, and our innovation and cost management measures will need to keep pace. I look forward to the remainder of the year with confidence in our ability to continue to create opportunities, to grow and to create value for our shareholders whilst ensuring that our hotels continue to provide an excellent customer experience and a great place to work.”