Key points:
- InterContinental Hotels (IHG) shares fell despite positive Q1 results.
- Travel-related stocks have taken a beating from investors today.
- Negative sentiment drove IHG shares lower despite its performance.
The InterContinental Hotels Group plc (LON: IHG), which owns the Holiday Inn, Crowne Plaza and interContinental hotel brands, today released its Q1 report highlighting its positive performance driven by high demand for leisure accommodation.
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The group attributed its positive performance to the easing of movement restrictions imposed by most governments in the second half of Q1, triggering an avalanche of leisure travellers who took advantage of the relaxed rules to travel.
The hotel group revealed that its revenue per available room (RevPAR) surged 61% in Q1 2022 compared to a similar period last year to reach 82% of 2019 figures, which act as the benchmark for the years before the coronavirus pandemic struck, bringing global passenger travel to a grinding halt.
The Group’s various hotel brands increased their average daily rate by 27% compared to 2021, bringing the rates in line with 2019 data. The group added 16,600 rooms to its portfolio after signing 120 hotels in Q1, marking a 15% improvement from 2021.
Keith Barr, IHG Hotels & Resorts CEO, said: “We've seen very positive trading conditions in the first quarter with travel demand continuing to increase in almost all of our key markets around the world. The high level of demand we have seen for leisure travel continues to drive increased rates and occupancy. As occupancy levels rise and due to the strength of our brands, our hotels are seeing increased pricing power; in March, our hotels in the US achieved leisure rates up by more than 10% on 2019 levels.
“Trading in Greater China continues to be impacted by restrictions put in place to control rising Covid cases. Our strategic focus on strengthening and expanding our brand portfolio continues to drive growth.”
Investors were unmoved by the positive Q1 operations and earnings results as the sour sentiment towards companies operating in the travel and hospitality sector persists. As a result, while the FTSE 100 and 250indices were lower for the day, travel-related stocks took a beating despite positive Q1 results.
IHG’s finances improved in Q1 after the group signed a new $1.35bn syndicated bank revolving credit facility (RCF) maturing in April 2017. IHG shares have recouped most of their losses at writing and traded almost flat for the day.
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