IHG reports trading continues to improve in Q1

07 May 2021

IHG has reported an improvement in demand within the first quarter, led by the Americas and Greater China, as the company issued a First Quarter Trading Update.

Group RevPAR down 50.6% vs 2019 (down 33.7% vs 2020); continued industry outperformance in key markets. RevPAR reflects a 23%pts reduction in occupancy, with rate sustained at ~80% of 2019 levels.

Occupancy of 40.0%, improving through the quarter; 223 hotels (4% of estate) closed at 31 March.

Net system size growth broadly flat YTD; global estate 884k rooms (5,959 hotels). Opened 7.3k rooms (56 hotels); 5.8k added to Essentials and Suites brands, 1.5k in Premium, Luxury & Lifestyle.

Removed 9.5k rooms (61 hotels); 6.3k (31 hotels) for Holiday Inn and Crowne Plaza in Americas and EMEAA.

Signed 14.5k rooms (92 hotels), ahead of Q1 last year; total pipeline increased to 274k rooms (1,820 hotels).

Repaid £600m UK Government CCFF at maturity; total available liquidity at 31 March of $2.1bn.

Keith Barr, Chief Executive Officer, IHG Hotels & Resorts, said: "Trading continued to improve during the first quarter of 2021, with IHG maintaining its outperformance of the industry in key markets and seeing strong performance in openings and signings as we expand our brands around the world. There was a notable pick-up in demand in March, particularly in the US and China, which continued into April. While the risk of volatility remains for the balance of the year, there is clear evidence from forward bookings data of further improvement as we look to the months ahead.

The improved Group RevPAR performance was led by the Americas, which strengthened to -43% versus 2019 levels compared to -50% in Q3 and Q4 2020. In EMEAA, the continuation of lockdowns across much of the region meant RevPAR levels were largely unchanged from the prior two quarters. In Greater China, after temporary domestic travel restrictions were lifted, demand recovered quickly in March towards levels seen in the second half of 2020.

We opened a further 56 hotels during the quarter, and these new openings broadly offset hotels removed as part of our continued focus on maintaining the highest quality estate for our guests. Linked to this, we are making good progress on our review of the Holiday Inn and Crowne Plaza estates. Our pipeline grew with 92 signings in the quarter, driven by our industry-leading midscale brands and continued strong owner appetite for conversion opportunities, particularly in our Premium and Luxury & Lifestyle categories. This includes conversions to our voco brand, which has achieved over 50 signings in more than 20 countries in fewer than three years since launch.

As the rollout of vaccines becomes more established, travel restrictions lift, and economic activity rebuilds, traveller demand will continue to grow and generate further momentum in an industry recovery over the course of the year. Coupled with our resilience as a business and the important work we're doing to support our owners, develop our brands and expand our pipeline, we're confident that IHG is well positioned for sustained growth."

Regional performance EMEAA
RevPAR was down 71.4% vs 2019 (down 62.0% vs 2020). Occupancy was 27%, compared to quarters 1-4 of 2020 of 54%, 14%, 31% and 29%, respectively. The performance by region continued to predominately reflect the differing levels of government-mandated closures and restrictions, with RevPAR vs 2019 down 75% in the UK, 87% Continental Europe, 75% Japan, 73% South East Asia and Korea, 51% Australia and 49% Middle East.

Hotel reopenings continued, with 165 hotels or 14% of the EMEAA estate still temporarily closed at the end of March, compared to 215 at the start of the year; eight of the 17 owned and leased hotels remained temporarily closed.

Gross system growth was 0.3% YTD, with the opening of 703 rooms (5 hotels); 2.0k rooms (13 hotels) were removed in the quarter, resulting in net growth of (0.6)% YTD. We signed 3.0k rooms (13 hotels) in the region, weighted to conversions.