Dalata Hotel Group PLC: Year End 2020 Trading and Development Update (1155857)

 
 Dalata Hotel Group PLC (DAL,DHG) 
Dalata Hotel Group PLC: Year End 2020 Trading and Development Update 
 
17-Dec-2020 / 07:00 GMT/BST 
Dissemination of a Regulatory Announcement, transmitted by EQS Group. 
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. 
 
      Year End Trading and Development Update 
 
     Strong Financial Position to Support Business Recovery and Growth 
 
      ISE: DHG LSE: DAL 
 
Dublin, 17 December 2020 | Dalata Hotel Group plc ("Dalata" or the "Group"), 
the largest hotel operator in Ireland, with a growing presence in the United 
   Kingdom, is pleased to announce that despite the challenging environment, 
    EBITDA for the year ending 31 December 2020 is expected to be marginally 
    ahead of market expectations and the Group remains in a strong financial 
  position with current cash and undrawn debt facilities of &euro293 million 
    after deducting upcoming payments including quarterly rent and interest. 
 
            Trading update 
 
 Trading in the second half of 2020 was continually disrupted as a result of 
       Covid-19 restrictions across the regions in which the Group operates. 
 
     Post the initial lockdown in Ireland and the UK, hotels reopened to the 
general public in June and July with hotels in Regional Ireland and Regional 
    UK benefiting from strong staycation demand during the summer months. As 
        expected, our Dublin and London hotels were quieter because a higher 
   proportion of their business is ordinarily driven by international travel 
      and events. Occupancy in Q3 amounted to 26% in Dublin, 60% in Regional 
            Ireland and 36% in the UK. 
 
   Following an increase in Covid-19 cases, the Irish government implemented 
   the highest level of restrictions, necessitating the closure of hotels to 
        the general public from 22 October for a period of six weeks. The UK 
      government implemented similar restrictions for the month of November. 
     However, most manufacturing and construction services remained open for 
   business compared to the previous lockdown in Q2, generating some limited 
            demand for hotel rooms. 
 
       Since the start of December there has been a significant reduction of 
 restrictions in Ireland. Our hotels in the UK are subject to varying levels 
 of restrictions. During December, bookings have been encouraging but are on 
      short lead times. Occupancy for Q4 is currently projected to be 17% in 
            Dublin, 28% in Regional Ireland and 21% in the UK. 
 
       EBITDA for the full year is expected to be marginally ahead of market 
 expectations as the Group continues to place a strong focus on cost control 
            and to avail of Government support schemes. 
 
     The decision to keep our hotel management teams intact ensured we could 
 respond proactively to the fast moving situation caused by the pandemic. We 
kept in contact with our key customers and secured new domestic customers in 
  our local markets. The safety of our people and our customers continues to 
        be at the forefront of our minds and our health and safety protocols 
      continue to be accredited by Bureau Veritas, a world leader in testing 
            inspection and certification. 
 
The Group has significant financial headroom to support the business through 
    the on-going recovery and continue on our path of growth and development 
     with current cash and undrawn debt facilities of &euro293 million after 
          deducting upcoming payments including quarterly rent and interest. 
 
Following an amendment to the Group's debt facilities agreement in July, the 
previous covenants comprising Net Debt to EBITDA and Interest Cover will not 
           be tested again until June 2022, providing the Group with further 
            flexibility. 
 
   The outlook for 2021 remains uncertain at present with short lead time on 
   bookings and it is not yet known when international travel will return to 
   more normal levels. However, the Group welcomes the very positive news on 
     vaccines in recent weeks and is optimistic on trading once the vaccines 
            start reducing the impact of Covid-19 on public health. 
 
            Development update 
 
    The Group continues to progress the development pipeline of almost 3,250 
    rooms across Ireland and the UK. In Q4 2020, we completed the 44-bedroom 
    extension at Clayton Hotel Birmingham and the Meeting & Events Centre at 
            Clayton Hotel Cardiff Lane in Dublin. 
 
            Our current pipeline includes: 
 
  · Dublin 
 
    · The Samuel Hotel is projected to open in summer 2021. 
 
    · The construction of Maldron Hotel Merrion Road and the residential 
    units is progressing well and scheduled for completion in Q1 2022. 
 
    · A planning decision is expected for Maldron Hotel Croke Park in 
    January 2021, the development is scheduled to commence construction in 
    Q2 2021 with a target opening date of Q3 2023. 
 
  · UK 
 
    · The Maldron Hotel Glasgow is scheduled to open in summer 2021. 
 
    · Construction continues at our four hotels located in Glasgow, Bristol 
    and Manchester (x2). Clayton Hotel Manchester and Clayton Hotel Bristol 
    are scheduled to open in Q1 2022 while both Maldron Hotel Manchester and 
    Clayton Hotel Glasgow are scheduled to open in Q2 2022. 
 
    · We have selected a Design & Build Contractor for the new Maldron Hotel 
    Shoreditch in London and expect to commence construction towards the end 
    of Q1 2021 with the hotel projected to open mid-2023. 
 
    · The developers of Maldron Hotel Birmingham and Maldron Hotel Liverpool 
    are targeting commencement of construction in mid-2021. 
 
    · Maldron Hotel Brighton and Maldron Hotel Victoria in Manchester 
    continue to progress through their respective planning processes. 
 
 Due to uncertainty caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and its impact on supply 
  chains, there is more uncertainty than usual surrounding the opening dates 
            of hotels in the development pipeline. 
 
          Dermot Crowley, Deputy CEO - Business Development & Finance, said: 
 
"2020 has been a very challenging year for people and communities across the 
world. The impact on the hospitality industry has been acute. In Dalata, our 
people have suffered significant losses of income through temporary layoffs, 
     reduced working hours and salary cuts. However, we remain resilient and 
     united in dealing with the ongoing impact of Covid-19. We note the very 
  positive news surrounding vaccines over the last month and look forward to 
            2021 with renewed optimism. 
 
       Our Central Office and hotel management teams remain in place and are 
enthusiastically looking forward to rebuilding the business as we go through 
2021. We look forward to welcoming those customers who have not been able to 
            visit us this year. 
 
   We have an exciting pipeline of hotels to open over the next three years. 
   Despite the devastating impact of Covid-19, we announced three new hotels 
         during 2020 in Dublin, Brighton and Manchester. We are working with 
 developers and site owners around the UK on potential new developments. The 
  positive impact of the recent equity placing on our balance sheet together 
     with the way in which we have met our rental obligations throughout the 
  Pandemic has enhanced our reputation as a strong reliable covenant. We are 
 confident that this will assist us greatly in building our pipeline further 
            in 2021. 
 
  We protected our liquidity as a priority over the last nine months through 
       the strong relationships we enjoy with our stakeholders. In April, we 
    completed a sale and leaseback of Clayton Hotel Charlemont in Dublin for 
        &euro65 million with Deka Immobilien. In July, we increased our debt 
 facilities with our banking club by &euro39 million, while in September, we 
 raised &euro94.4 million from our shareholders through a share placing. The 
strength of our balance sheet, the retention of our teams and the quality of 
   our hotel portfolio will give us a significant advantage as international 
            travel recommences in 2021".S 
 
            About Dalata 
 
    Dalata Hotel Group plc was founded in August 2007 and listed as a plc in 
  March 2014. Dalata has a strategy of owning or leasing its hotels and also 
       has a small number of management contracts. The Group's portfolio now 
consists of 29 owned hotels, 12 leased hotels and three management contracts 
 with a total of 9,255 bedrooms. In addition to this, the Group is currently 
      developing 13 new hotels and has plans to extend three of its existing 
  hotels, adding close to 3,250 bedrooms in total. This will bring the total 
    number of bedrooms in Dalata to over 12,500. For the first six months of 
  2020, Dalata reported revenue of &euro80.8 million and a loss after tax of 
   &euro63.1 million. Dalata is listed on the Main Market of Euronext Dublin 
   (DHG) and the London Stock Exchange (DAL). For further information visit: 
            www.dalatahotelgroup.com [1]. 
 
            Contacts 
 
   Dalata Hotel Group plc                    Tel [phone] 
          Pat McCann, CEO [e-mail] 
                                     Dermot Crowley, Deputy CEO, 
 
                                  Business Development & Finance 
                          Niamh Carr, Investor Relations Manager 
 
    Joint Company Brokers 
    Davy: Anthony Farrell                    Tel [phone] 
    Berenberg: Ben Wright                   Tel [phone] 
 
Investor Relations and PR                   Tel [phone] 
         | FTI Consulting 
          Melanie Farrell               [e-mail] 
 
ISIN:           IE00BJMZDW83, IE00BJMZDW83 
Category Code:  TST 
TIDM:           DAL,DHG 
LEI Code:       635400L2CWET7ONOBJ04 
OAM Categories: 3.1. Additional regulated information required to be 

                disclosed under the laws of a Member State 
Sequence No.:   89875 
EQS News ID:    1155857 
 
End of Announcement EQS News Service 
 
 
1: https://eqs-cockpit.com/cgi-bin/fncls.ssp?fn=redirect&url=77bedc042ac1a02fa001cdbb278052c6&application_id=1155857&site_id=vwd&application_name=news 
 

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

December 17, 2020 02:00 ET (07:00 GMT)