MEXICO CITY, July 19, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Grupo Hotelero Santa Fe S.A.B. de C.V. (BMV: HOTEL ) (“HOTEL” or “the Company”), announced its consolidated results for the second quarter (“2Q18”) ended June 30 th , 2018. Figures are expressed in Mexican Pesos, are unaudited and are in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”) and may vary due to rounding.

Highlights

  •  2Q18 EBITDA 1 reached Ps. 133.1 million, a 21.3% increase compared to 2Q17 driven by revenue growth. 2Q18 EBITDA margin reached 28.2% compared to 29.8% in 2Q17.
  •  2Q18 Total Revenue reached Ps. 472.2 million, a 28.2% increase compared to 2Q17, driven by the following increases: i) 22.7% in Room Revenue, ii) 55.0% in Food and Beverages Revenue, and iii) 10.7% in Other Hotel Revenue, which more than offset a 26.0% decline in Third-party Hotels’ Management Fees. We accomplished these growth rates even though this year holy week was in the first quarter compared to last year where it was in the second quarter.
  •  2Q18 Net Income posted a loss of Ps. 77.8 million, compared to a gain of Ps. 74.1 million to 2Q17. The increase in operating income was offset by an FX loss and higher financing costs.
  •  2Q18 Net operating cash flow was Ps. 144.4 million, an increase of 12.3% compared to the Ps. 128.6 million reported in 2Q17. This increase was driven by EBITDA growth.
  •  Net Debt/EBITDA (LTM) ratio was 3.4x at the end of 2Q18. Operating cash flow in U.S dollars represented 85.0% of total operating cash flow, thereby providing a natural hedge of the dollarized financial debt.
  •  HOTEL’s total portfolio at the end of 2Q18 reached 5,756 rooms in operation, an 9.3% increase compared to the 5,264 rooms at end of 2Q17.
  •  RevPAR 2 for the Company-owned hotels increased by 1.1% in 2Q18 compared to 2Q17, driven by a 4.3% growth in ADR 2 which more than offset a 1.9 percentage point decrease in Occupancy.
  •  HOTEL announces the following changes to the Company’s management team, effective July 20 th , 2018:
   
  • The appointment of Francisco Zinser Cieslik as Executive Vice Chairman (not a member) of the Board. Francisco Zinser, which until now was CEO of the Company, is now designated Executive Vice Chairman (not a member) of the Board and will mainly focus on expansion, development and strategy for the Company, as well as corporate finance and investor relations.
  • The appointment of Francisco Medina Elizalde as CEO of the Company. Francisco Medina, who previously was the deputy CEO, will continue being in charge of the operation of the Company.

1 EBITDA is calculated by adding Operating Income, Depreciation and Total Non-recurring expenses.

2 Revenue per Available Room (“RevPAR”) and Average Daily Rate (“ADR”). 

  Second Quarter   6 months ended June 30
Figures in thousand Mexican Pesos 2018 2017 Var. % Var.   2018 2017 Var. % Var.
Total Revenue   472,176   368,336 103,841 28.2    1,047,145   755,377 291,768 38.6
EBITDA   133,096   109,745 23,350 21.3     358,730   260,391 98,339 37.8
EBITDA Margin 28.2% 29.8% (1.6 pt) (1.6 pt)   34.3% 34.5% (0.2 pt) (0.2 pt)
Operating Income   77,434   65,139 12,296 18.9     248,793   175,475 73,318 41.8
Net Income   (77,818)   74,147 -151,966 NA     127,131   259,073 -131,942 (50.9)
Net Income Margin (16.5%) 20.1% (36.6 pt) (36.6 pt)   12.1% 34.3% (22.2 pt) (22.2 pt)
Operating Cashflow   144,434   128,577 15,857 12.3     340,091   285,256 54,835 19.2
Occupancy 61.0% 62.9% (1.9 pt) (1.9 pt)   67.0% 66.2% 0.8 pt 0.8 pt
ADR   1,393   1,336 57 4.3     1,446   1,415 31 2.2
RevPAR   849   840 9 1.1     969   937 32 3.4
Note: operating figures include hotels with 50%+ ownership.                  

Comments from the Chief Executive Officer

Mr. Francisco Zinser, stated:

HOTEL posted solid results in the first half of 2018, although Revenue and EBITDA growth rates ended below guidance, as results for the second quarter came in lower than expected, due to external and internal factors. Regarding external factors, we observed a reduced number of tourist arrivals in both resort and urban destinations. During the quarter, resort destinations were affected by a decrease in tourist traffic from the US attributable to a higher perception of insecurity in the run-up to general elections in Mexico. On the other hand, in terms of local travel, we had a negative effect of holy week which was in the first quarter this year compared to second quarter of last year, combined with practices of certain companies reducing their expenditures during pre-electoral times affected urban destinations. We expect that both factors will have a minimal to null effect on our results towards year-end, considering their transitory nature.

In terms of internal factors, the later-than-expected opening date of “ The Hacienda ” at Hilton Puerto Vallarta and the delayed remodeling of rooms at the Krystal Grand Puerto Vallarta weighted on our results for the second quarter. “ The Hacienda ” at Hilton Puerto Vallarta, which has 192 rooms, opened in June instead of its originally scheduled opening date in April. The remodeling of 216 rooms at the Krystal Grand Nuevo Vallarta was delayed, however 60% of these rooms are already in operation since early July and the rest will be ready by September this year. We believe that the negative impacts in the quarter are mostly transitory in nature and we expect to observe the gradual positive effects related to our partnership with AMResorts during the 2H18.

In relation to the Tourism sector in Mexico, according to figures from the Mexican Tourism Industry (Sectur), Mexico’s international visitors spent on average 5% less in the first five months of 2018 compared to the same period last year.

A month ago, we announced the signing of a strategic alliance with AMResorts. As a result, a co-branding was implemented between Reflect® Resorts & Spas brand and Krystal Grand® brand for the hotels in Punta Cancun , Los Cabos and Nuevo Vallarta which jointly account for 1,329 rooms. Through this strategic alliance, which started on July 1 st , 2018, we expect to significantly boost sales of our three hotels, in addition to the opportunity to expand this partnership to more properties. It is important to note that AMResorts is responsible for the commercialization, sales and marketing of the properties, enabling the Company to attain a higher growth on international sales, and therefore, higher foreign currency denominated sales percentage, as well as better customer acquisition thanks to Apple Leisure Group’s distribution network, one of the largest global operators for leisure travel to Mexico. Furthermore, HOTEL maintains the ownership and control of operations of the Hotels. This strategic alliance gives us access to a more direct, diversified and profitable distribution channels which, combined with our proven capability as the best hotel operator in Mexico, will enhance the results of these properties.

Moving on to our quarterly results, Total Revenue was Ps. 472.2 million and EBITDA was Ps. 133.1 million, up 28% and 21%, respectively, compared to the figures recorded in 2Q17. Regarding company-owned hotels, RevPAR increased by 1.1%, driven by a 4.3% increase in ADR which more than offset a 1.9% decrease in occupancy due to the abovementioned factors.

In HOTEL, we remain committed to become the leading hotel company in Mexico. The extraordinary management team and associates we have assembled and the strategy we have outlined will allow us to continue growing efficiently and profitably in the long run. As always, we are thankful for the trust and support of our shareholders.

2Q18 Conference Call Details: 
HOTEL will host its earnings webcast (audio + presentation) to discuss results:
Date :  Friday, July 20, 2018
Time :  12:00 p.m. Mexico City Time 1:00 p.m. New York Time
To participate in the conference call and Q&A session please dial: 
Telephone: U.S.: 1 800 863 3908 International +1 334 323 7224 Mexico: 01 800 847 7666
Conference password:  HOTEL 000
Webcast:  The webcast will be in English. To follow the Power Point presentation and the audio of the call, please visit our website www.gsf-hotels.com/investors

 

About Grupo Hotelero Santa Fe

HOTEL is a leading company in the Mexican hotel industry, centered on acquiring, converting, developing and operating its own hotels as well as third party-owned hotels. The Company focuses on strategic hotel location and quality, a unique hotel management model, strict expense control and the proprietary Krystal® brand as well as other international brands. As of year-end 2017, the Company employed over 3,200 people and generated revenues of Ps. 1,582 million. For more information, please visit www.gsf-hotels.com

Legal Note on Forward Looking Statements:

The information provided in this report contains certain forward-looking statements and information related to Grupo Hotelero Santa Fe, S.A.B. de C.V. and its subsidiaries (jointly “Grupo Hotelero Santa Fe”, “HOTEL”, or the “Company”) which are based in the understanding of its managers, as well as in assumptions and information currently available for the Company. Such statements reflect the current view of Grupo Hotelero Santa Fe in regard to future events subject to a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Several features may cause that the results, performance or current achievements of the Company may differ materially with respect to future results, performance or attainments of Grupo Hotelero Santa Fe that may be included, expressly or implied within such statements in regard to the future, including among others, alterations in the economic general conditions and/or politics, governmental and commercial changes globally or within the countries in which the Company has any business interests, changes in the interests rates and inflation, exchange rates volatility, changes in the demand and regulations of the products marketed by the Company, changes in the price of raw materials and other goods, changes in the business strategies and several other features. If one or more these of risks or uncertainties are materialized, or if the assumptions used result to be incorrect, the real results may materially differ from those described herein as anticipated, believed, expected or envisioned. Grupo Hotelero Santa Fe undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements.

Contact Information

Enrique Martínez Guerrero CFO +52 55 5261 0800 inversionistas@gsf-hotels.com

Maximilian Zimmermann IR Director +52 55 5261 4508 mzimmermann@gsf-hotels.com