(May 12, 2010) Papa John’s International Inc. said chief financial officer David Flanery would oversee the company’s global operations on an interim basis following the resignation of its president of global operations, William M. Mitchell.
In filing made Tuesday with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Papa John's said Mitchell had resigned April 29 and that it had agreed to pay him $463,906 in severance.
Jude Thompson, Papa John’s president who recently was promoted to co-chief executive, informed investors of Mitchell’s resignation during the company’s most recent earnings conference call.
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Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Clearview To Raise $375M For Hotel Buys
May 11 (Reuters) - Clearview Hotel Trust Inc filed with U.S. regulators on Tuesday to raise up to $375 million in an initial public offering of common stock. The California-based company told the U.S Securities and Exchange Commission in a preliminary prospectus that BofA Merrill Lynch, Citi, Deutsche Bank Securities and UBS Investment Bank were underwriting the IPO. The company is a real estate investment trust with a portfolio of mainly upscale full service hotel properties in the United States. The company had revenue of $142.6 million in 2009, the filing showed. The filing did not reveal how many shares the company planned to sell or their expected price.
Carlson picks tony address for first U.S. Radisson Blu luxury hotel
Carlson will spend $125 million for the tony address, making it one of the priciest hotel buys yet as hotel investors seek distressed properties. With credit markets still tight, Carlson is paying half the amount in cash, the AP story says.
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Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Foreclosures take smaller bite out of Orlando hotel market
As Central Florida struggles with some of the highest home-mortgage delinquency rates in the nation, local hotel owners appear to be doing a better job than their peers elsewhere at keeping their properties out of trouble with lenders.
Even after a year of poor occupancy and revenue-robbing discounts, a relatively small number of hotels are behind on their payments in this, the nation's second-largest hotel market, according to a New York company that tracks commercial-mortgage activity.
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Even after a year of poor occupancy and revenue-robbing discounts, a relatively small number of hotels are behind on their payments in this, the nation's second-largest hotel market, according to a New York company that tracks commercial-mortgage activity.
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At High-End Hotels, Business Is Looking Up
IN the depths of the recession, a cartoon made the rounds in the executive offices of the Ritz-Carlton hotel chain. “It showed a guy trying to change the name on the sign above his hotel from Ritz to Fritz,” said Simon Cooper, the president of Ritz-Carlton, which is the top luxury brand of Marriott International.
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Nakheel Gets Dubai Support to Pay $980 Million Bond
May 11 (Bloomberg) -- Nakheel PJSC, the unit of Dubai World that is restructuring $10.5 billion of debt, said the Dubai Financial Support Fund provided money for the full payment of its Islamic bond maturing May 13.
Nakheel’s floating-rate 3.6 billion dirhams ($980 million) Islamic bond, or sukuk, rose 1.5 percent to 98.5 fils to the dirham after the announcement, according to Mashreq Capital DIFC Ltd. The notes have climbed about 50 percent since Dubai World on March 25 proposed to renegotiate terms of its debt. Nakheel’s statement was posted on Nasdaq Dubai’s website today.
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Nakheel’s floating-rate 3.6 billion dirhams ($980 million) Islamic bond, or sukuk, rose 1.5 percent to 98.5 fils to the dirham after the announcement, according to Mashreq Capital DIFC Ltd. The notes have climbed about 50 percent since Dubai World on March 25 proposed to renegotiate terms of its debt. Nakheel’s statement was posted on Nasdaq Dubai’s website today.
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Sands China Has $1.75 Billion Financing for Expansion
May 11 (Bloomberg) -- Sands China Ltd., Asia’s biggest casino operator by market value, obtained $1.75 billion of debt financing from a group of banks to resume building a resort in Macau, Chief Executive Officer Steve Jacobs said.
Sands China may sign agreements with seven main banks, including international and Chinese lenders, as soon as this week, Jacobs said an interview in Hong Kong today. The company will also spend about $500 million from its initial public offering in November on the resort in Macau, the only place in China where casinos are legal.
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Sands China may sign agreements with seven main banks, including international and Chinese lenders, as soon as this week, Jacobs said an interview in Hong Kong today. The company will also spend about $500 million from its initial public offering in November on the resort in Macau, the only place in China where casinos are legal.
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Enterprise Inns Rises After Refinancing Debt
May 11 (Bloomberg) -- Enterprise Inns Plc, the U.K.’s second-biggest pub owner, rose the most since January in London trading after saying it had refinanced bank debt and made a first-half profit.
Enterprise Inns climbed as much as 15 percent. Net income was 82 million pounds ($121.5 million) in the six months ended March 31, from zero pounds a year earlier, the Solihull, England-based company said in a statement today
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Enterprise Inns climbed as much as 15 percent. Net income was 82 million pounds ($121.5 million) in the six months ended March 31, from zero pounds a year earlier, the Solihull, England-based company said in a statement today
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Ash Cloud May Cost Travel Industry $1.5 Billion, TUI Chief Says
May 11 (Bloomberg) -- The volcanic ash cloud that shut down U.K. airspace for six days last month may have cost the travel industry more than 1 billion pounds ($1.5 billion), according to Peter Long, the head of tour operator TUI Travel Plc.
TUI, Europe’s largest tourism company, said today that operating profit will be reduced by about 90 million pounds because of canceled holidays, as well as the cost of looking after stranded customers and getting them home. Also today, EasyJet Plc, Europe’s second-biggest discount airline, said the disruption to flights cost it 50 million pounds to 75 million pounds.
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TUI, Europe’s largest tourism company, said today that operating profit will be reduced by about 90 million pounds because of canceled holidays, as well as the cost of looking after stranded customers and getting them home. Also today, EasyJet Plc, Europe’s second-biggest discount airline, said the disruption to flights cost it 50 million pounds to 75 million pounds.
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Conflict over plan to close Wyndham Nassau Resort
A disagreement between the Bahamas Hotel Catering and Allied Workers Union (BHCAWU) and Baha Mar could lead to industrial action in the coming weeks, as the hotel workers union has taken exception to a proposal by the Wyndham Nassau Resort to close for nearly two months later this year.
The Nassau Guardian understands that the Wyndham's proposition to close its hotel and casino from August 23 to October 7, 2010 - as it did last year - is being regarded as contrary to the agreement the hotel union signed with the Bahamas Hotel Employers Association last year, which said that the BHEA would not lay off any hotel workers in 2010 if the union agreed the BHEA could reduce its pension contributions by half this year.
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The Nassau Guardian understands that the Wyndham's proposition to close its hotel and casino from August 23 to October 7, 2010 - as it did last year - is being regarded as contrary to the agreement the hotel union signed with the Bahamas Hotel Employers Association last year, which said that the BHEA would not lay off any hotel workers in 2010 if the union agreed the BHEA could reduce its pension contributions by half this year.
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Caribbean Tourist Arrivals Down 3.2 % in 2009
According to Caribbean Hotels and Tourism Investment Conference presenter Carlos Vogeler, international tourist arrivals to the entire Caribbean was down 3.2 percent to 19.4 million arrivals coming all of last year. The regional director for the Americas said they were visitors that contributed to a total of $22.4 billion in receipts recorded in 2009, although that was down by 4.1 percent from the year-ago period.
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IHG First Quarter Results to 31 March 2010
Business headlines
Global constant currency first quarter RevPAR growth of 0.2%, including growth of 4.1% in March.
Asia Pacific was the strongest region reporting RevPAR growth of 10.0%, including a 22.2% increase in Greater China.
5,151 net rooms (38 hotels) added in the quarter, increasing total system size to 651,830 rooms (4,476 hotels).
9,872 rooms (82 hotels) added to the system, 4,721 rooms (44 hotels) removed in line with our quality growth strategy.
8,160 rooms (55 hotels) signed, taking the pipeline to 200,895 rooms (1,344 hotels).
Net debt of $1.1bn, down $0.2bn on the position as at 31 March 2009 and held flat on the position as at 31 December 2009.
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Global constant currency first quarter RevPAR growth of 0.2%, including growth of 4.1% in March.
Asia Pacific was the strongest region reporting RevPAR growth of 10.0%, including a 22.2% increase in Greater China.
5,151 net rooms (38 hotels) added in the quarter, increasing total system size to 651,830 rooms (4,476 hotels).
9,872 rooms (82 hotels) added to the system, 4,721 rooms (44 hotels) removed in line with our quality growth strategy.
8,160 rooms (55 hotels) signed, taking the pipeline to 200,895 rooms (1,344 hotels).
Net debt of $1.1bn, down $0.2bn on the position as at 31 March 2009 and held flat on the position as at 31 December 2009.
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InterContinental Hotels Sales Up After 18 Months Of Falls
LONDON (Dow Jones)--InterContinental Hotels Group PLC (IHG) Tuesday reported a 15% rise in first-quarter profit as the return of business travelers to high-end hotels drove its first positive revenue performance in 18 months.
The world's largest hotel operator by number of rooms said that its operating profit rose to $83 million in the three months to March 31 from $72 million the previous year. Intercontinental, which counts Holiday Inn, Intercontinental and Crowne Plaza among its brands, said that revenue per available room, or RevPAR--a key industry measure--grew 0.2% in the quarter, accelerating to 4.1% in the month of March and 5.2% in April. In the last three months of 2009, RevPAR dropped 10.9%.
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The world's largest hotel operator by number of rooms said that its operating profit rose to $83 million in the three months to March 31 from $72 million the previous year. Intercontinental, which counts Holiday Inn, Intercontinental and Crowne Plaza among its brands, said that revenue per available room, or RevPAR--a key industry measure--grew 0.2% in the quarter, accelerating to 4.1% in the month of March and 5.2% in April. In the last three months of 2009, RevPAR dropped 10.9%.
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GE Capital, Franchise Finance Co-Leads $36MM Funding for Roark Capital Acquisition of Wingstop Restaurants
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--GE Capital, Franchise Finance recently co-led the funding of a $36 million debt facility for the acquisition of Wingstop Restaurants, Inc. by an affiliate of Roark Capital Group, an Atlanta-based private equity firm specializing in franchising. Funding was provided through GE Capital, Franchise Finance's bank affiliate, GE Capital Financial, Inc.
“Being the incumbent lender to Wingstop and also having completed multiple deals with Roark, we have a strong relationship with both parties that made this an easy process,” says Robert Daniel, senior vice president at GE Capital, Franchise Finance.
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“Being the incumbent lender to Wingstop and also having completed multiple deals with Roark, we have a strong relationship with both parties that made this an easy process,” says Robert Daniel, senior vice president at GE Capital, Franchise Finance.
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