Profits up by 25% at Apex Hotels
The opening of the Apex Temple Court hotel has helped boost profits at Apex Hotels by 25% to £7m, with turnover up by 21% to £50.6m.
Occupancy across the group increased 1.2% to 81.4%, with average room rate and revenue per available room rate rising by 6.1% to £115.45 and 7.4% to £93.93 respectively.
Towards the end of the financial year, the Apex Waterloo and Apex City of London hotels entered into ground rent lease transactions, with two further hotels, Apex European in Edinburgh and Apex City Quay in Dundee, entering into similar arrangements since the end of the year. The £35m generated from these transactions has been used to repay bank borrowings.
Under the terms of these lease agreements, Apex Hotels retains the right to operate the properties for the next 150 years, with the option to repurchase each hotel at the end of the lease term for £1.
A new bank facility comprising £69m debt, with a revolving credit facility of £10m, has recently been arranged with RBS to consolidate existing loans. This will allow the company to undertake planned capital investment throughout its hotels.
Angela Vickers, managing director of Apex Hotels, said the company has experienced "strong growth in occupancy and increased demand" over the past year. "The completion of the ground rent lease transactions, together with the debt refinancing, have strengthened our financial position, and we remain focused upon a programme of ongoing investment in the current portfolio, together with the pursuit of additional growth opportunities," she added.
Kevin Havelock, regional director, RBS CIB, Scotland, said: "The management team at Apex has delivered an excellent performance for the year, with a clear focus on the future growth and ongoing success of the business."
Apex Hotels operates four hotels in Edinburgh, three in London and one in Dundee.
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