A Time to Look Forward – Dalata Hotel Group plc 2022

Business in Recovery with Ambitious Growth Objectives.

Dalata Hotel Group plc (‘Dalata’ or the ‘Group’), the largest hotel operator in Ireland, with a growing presence in the United Kingdom and Continental Europe, announces its results for the year ended 31 December 2021.
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A Tale of Two Halves: Strong Operating Performance as Pandemic Recedes:
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• Revenue growth of 40% to €192.0 million, 45% of levels reported in 2019
• Following the reopening of hotels at the end of Q2 2021, ‘like for like’ Group RevPAR1 increased from 19% of 2019 levels for the first six months of 2021 to 58% in July and 78% in November as events and domestic corporate business returned.

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• Adjusted EBITDA1 of €63.2 million and loss before tax of €11.4 million
• Free Cash Flow1 of €28.0 million (2019: €100.6 million) after payments for interest, rent and refurbishment capex1 (H2 2021: €49.0 million)
• Maintaining our core management teams at the hotels and central office throughout the pandemic provided stability which enabled us to scale up quickly to meet higher demand and customer expectations as restrictions were reduced

Continue to Focus on Creating Long-Term Value

• Well positioned for the recovery in demand and to meet the changing needs of our customers with our strong financial position, stable and experienced teams and continued focus on innovation
• Initial growth will be primarily through further recovery of existing portfolio and new hotels funded predominantly by long term leases while cash flow generation returns to pre pandemic levels
• Current pipeline of over 2,000 rooms in prime locations which will see UK footprint surpass Dublin by 2025
• Regional UK and London remains the primary focus but also looking at large European cities for growth opportunities
• Post year end, announced entry into Continental Europe with operating leasehold interest in Hotel Nikko, Dusseldorf
• Commitment to responsible operations and growth

Outlook
Trade at the start of 2022 was disrupted by restrictions following the emergence of the Omicron Covid-19 variant. However, January and February are traditionally our quietest months. Virtually all restrictions in Ireland and the UK were removed at the end of January which resulted in a rise in bookings, with ‘like for like’ Group occupancy1 increasing from 38% in January to 62% in February. ‘Like for like’ Group RevPAR1 for February expected to be 91% of the level achieved in 2019.

As we look forward, and in the absence of any further material Covid-19 restrictions, we remain optimistic about the ongoing recovery of the business. There has been significant pent-up demand for travel following the easing of restrictions, and due to a combination of a more benign evolution of the Covid-19 virus and high levels of vaccination, we expect this to continue. As more and more companies return to their physical offices, we expect this to be a catalyst for increased domestic corporate travel and the return of international corporate travel and conferences. The indication of the return of airline capacity and strong calendar of events is also promising.

READ THE FULL HOTEL & RESTAURANT TIMES ARTICLE HERE