InterContinental Hotels delivers strongest quarter in two years
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) has reported its best quarter in two years, with revenue per available room (Revpar) jumping seven per cent from the same time last year, growing in every region.
In the first nine months of the year, Revpar grew 6.3 per cent. The FTSE 100 company said it was given a significant boost by "record levels" of US demand. Of the 8,000 rooms opened during the quarter, 90 per cent were in InterContinental's priority markets.
However, the third quarter was better than expected in Europe, with Revpar rising 6.1 per cent rather than the estimated five per cent.
Richard Solomons, chief executive of IHG, said:
Whilst some of our markets face heightened uncertainty and risks, we continue to see strong momentum in the business and remain encouraged by current trading and positive booking trends.
City broker Numis was impressed with the company's plans:
We consider IHG to be a well managed business with an attractive business model and a sound strategy for growth. Organic growth prospects are promising and the company is particularly well positioned in the United States hotel market, which is at the sweet spot in the cycle (high occupancy, rising demand and limited supply growth are driving strong RevPAR growth). This is a situation that we believe will persist for at least another couple of years.