Marriott reports "terrific" results in first full year following Starwood acquisition
Marriott has reported a "terrific" year following its acquisition of Starwood, according to the company's latest set of financial results.
Although net income sank, fourth quarter 2017 adjusted net income was $415m (£332m), a 24% increase on 2016.
Worldwide, comparable systemwide revenue per available room (revpar) rose 4.6% in the fourth quarter and 3.1% for the full year. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation in the fourth quarter hit $808m (£646m), a 7% increase.
Arne Sorenson, president and chief executive officer of Marriott International, said: "2017 was a terrific year. We made great progress on the integration of Starwood, capturing significant property and corporate overhead cost synergies.
"In 2018, we anticipate our number of rooms will increase roughly 7% gross, while rooms deletions should total 1-1.5% during the year. We also continue to expect global revpar will increase by 1-3%."
The company added more than 76,000 rooms and 473 new properties during 2017, including around 11,000 rooms converted from other brands, to reach over 1.25 million rooms. Nearly 70 properties left Marriott during the year.
By the year end Marriott's worldwide development pipeline increased to approximately 2,700 hotels and more than 460,000 rooms, more than 80% of which are in the upscale or luxury tiers.
At year-end, Marriott's total debt was down from $8.5b to $8.2b.
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