Hyatt Reports Q1 Corporate Demand Rebound Led by Large Companies

Business transient revenue showed the strongest relative recovery in the first quarter among Hyatt Hotels Corp. segments, more than doubling year over year and reaching approximately 85 percent of pre-pandemic levels, president and CEO Mark Hoplamazian said Thursday during an earnings call.

In March, business transient revenue reached 92 percent of March 2019 levels.

Large corporate accounts drove recovery momentum in the quarter, according to Hoplamazian.

“We’re seeing large corporates get up and get back on the road,” he said. Demand from small and midsized enterprises improved slightly and was in the same approximate range as 2019 levels, he added, while revenue for the sector has “basically been over 2019 levels for several quarters.”

Hyatt Q1 systemwide revenue per available room was $130.54, up 43 percent over 2022 levels and up 6 percent over 2019, company executives said on the call. The company’s average daily rate was $202.29, up 11.6 percent year over year. Hyatt’s first-quarter occupancy increased 14 percentage points year over year to 64.5 percent.

Occupancy is tracking “well behind” 2019 levels in what the company considers its business-focused hotels, according to Hoplamazian. He added that the once-clear line between “what used to be called business transient” and group has become blurred, so travel drivers look “different today,” and some demand recovery presents as group revenue and some as business transient.

With that said, Hyatt’s group segment displayed “robust revenue growth,” with a 70 percent year-over-year increase in Q1, surpassing the first quarter of 2019, Hoplamazian said. Group revenue is pacing up 24 percent for the year over 2022 levels, he added.

Additional Q1 Results

Hyatt achieved “significant” net-room expansion in Q1 with 117,000 rooms in the pipeline, partially thanks to the company’s Dream Hotels acquisition, which was announced in November and closed in February.

In Q1, Hyatt reported total revenue of $1.68 billion, up 31 percent year over year, and net income at $58 million, compared with a $73 million net loss in Q1 2022.

Angelique Platas www.businesstravelnews.com