Barry Bloom
Analyst · Morgan Stanley. Please go ahead
Thank you, Marcel. As a reminder, all of the portfolio information I will be speaking about is reported on a same-property basis for 42 hotels for the quarter-end. As Marcel mentioned, our portfolio performance exceeded our expeditions for the quarter, largely due to the Super Bowl and Easter shift that benefited our Houston properties more than we anticipated. For first quarter 2017, our same-property RevPAR grew 2.7% comprised of 123 basis points of occupancy growth and a 1% increase in rate. Our Houston area hotels, which make up about 10% of our rooms, experienced a stronger quarter with RevPAR up 2.2%. Our group business was up approximately 10% for the quarter compared to last year, with transient and contract business declining by approximately 60 basis points. Two major events impacted our results positively for the quarter. The Presidential inauguration, which benefited our Hilton Garden Inn, Washington, DC Downtown and the Lorien Hotel in Alexandria, Virginia, and Super Bowl 51 in Houston, which had a very positive impact on our Westin Galleria and Oaks properties as well as the Woodlands Waterway Marriott, though in a less meaningful way. Keep in mind that our Marriott San Francisco Airport Waterfront and Hyatt Regency Santa Clara similarly benefited from Super Bowl 50 last year. As anticipated, our Q1 RevPAR growth will be offset somewhat by a weaker April with our overall portfolio RevPAR down approximately 4.5% for the month primarily due to the shift of Easter into April this year. As opposed to the first quarter, the second quarter and remainder of the year will continue to be negatively impacted by the performance of our Houston assets. Excluding our Houston hotels, RevPAR for our portfolio was down approximately 3% in April, as our Houston hotels average RevPAR was down nearly 20%. The magnitude of this decline was in line with our expectations, as the Galleria Hotels were particularly impacted by both the Easter shift and the extensive renovations taking place at the Westin Galleria. However, we believe that our first quarter performance is indicative of the growth that our strong and diversified portfolio will be able to deliver in the future, as we complete our Westin renovation and enjoy the benefit of an ultimately recovering Houston market as a significant value driver within our portfolio. Our top-performing markets during the quarter were Napa with RevPAR up 33% primarily due to the renovation of the Napa Valley Marriott last year, Salt Lake City up 19%, and Washington, DC, up 17%. We continue to be pleased with the strong ramp up of both of our Autograph Collection Grand Bohemian Hotels in Birmingham, Alabama and Charleston, South Carolina, which were up 27% and 23%, respectively, for the quarter. Our most challenged market this quarter was San Diego, down 26% due to anticipated disruption caused by our extensive guest room renovation. Other notable markets with RevPAR declines for the quarter included Austin, down 4% and Key West, down 3%. We are pleased with our margin performance for the quarter, up 68 basis points with significant strength in food and beverage revenue and profit due primarily to the seasonal shifting group business, which drove strong banquet business as a direct result of an increasing group mix for the quarter. This particularly benefited our large group hotels. Our EBITDA margin was somewhat muted by an increase in real estate taxes, which faced a tough comparison in the last year’s first quarter. But at the GOP level, margin improved 91 basis points. We continue to focus on continuity and planning for those aspects of the business that we do control. We continue to be pleased with the momentum and results achieved through our property optimization process which was conducted at nine portfolio hotels last year and is scheduled to take place at 10 hotels this year. We expect the last year’s tops will enhance our bottom line by over $2 million, once all of our recommendations have been implemented. We continue to find the best opportunities in labor productivity, food and beverage pricing and purchasing efficiencies through our internal portfolio initiatives team, which allows us to completely control this process and capture 100% of any process improvements. As evidenced by our first quarter results of the property, we are beginning to realize the benefits of our substantial renovation of the Napa Valley Marriott, which take place primarily during the early part of 2016. As a reminder, this $12 million project consisted of a complete guestroom and bathroom renovation, including 82 tub-to-shower conversions, corridor and meeting space renovation and a complete pool and outdoor function space transformation. The market has reacted extremely well to the upgrade of this property, both in terms of leisure and group business. RevPAR for Q1 was up 24% compared to Q1 of 2015 prior to the renovation. Our group pace for the second half of the year is up 50% over the same period last year, reflecting the significant enhancement and desirability of this hotel to the group market following its substantial renovation. Before discussing our 2017 guestroom renovations, I would like to share some information regarding the successes that resulted from our historic major guestroom renovations. Looking across our major guestroom renovation projects completed between March 2012 and February 2015, RevPAR increased on average 21.5% from the trailing 12 months prior to the renovation to the trailing 12 months calculated at the 15-month mark following the renovation. Over the same period, our STR RevPAR Index increased an average of 7.5 points, highlighting the ability to significantly outperform our competitive sets following renovations of this magnitude and our success in identifying assets where capital expenditures result in superior returns. Our two primary guestroom renovation projects that were taking place during the first quarter, the Andaz San Diego and the Westin Galleria in Houston, have been well executed. The 159-room Andaz San Diego has completed a comprehensive guestroom and corridor renovation, including new case goods, soft goods, flooring and mattresses. The guestroom renovation of Westin Galleria, which will be completed in early third quarter, consists of a comprehensive guestroom and corridor renovation including case goods, soft goods, flooring, mattresses and televisions. Through this renovation, 358 bathrooms are being converted from bathtubs to showers. We’re optimizing the suite mix which will reduce the size of the hotel by 18 keys. The creation of this new suite category will allow the hotel to compete more effectively in both the corporate and association group segments. We have completed our planning for the next phase of our renovation of the Westin Galleria to include a complete lobby renovation with the addition of bar service and the transformation of the top floor of the hotel to include a concierge lounge, which has never been part of the hotel’s program, the relocation of the fitness center from a windowless room to a dramatic top floor space and revitalization of the hotel’s primary social catering space. We expect these projects to commence in Q3 and be completed in the middle of Q4. We are confident that this revitalized hotel will return to its leadership position within the Galleria’s submarket following its renovation. As a reminder, we’re moving ahead with a similar guestroom renovation project at the Westin Oaks beginning in Q4. Let me now turn the call over to Atish.