Starwood Hotels & Resorts reported on Thursday that net income fell 81% in the first quarter of this year.

The company, whose brands include Sheraton, Westin, W and St. Regis, earned just $4 million on $1.1 billion in revenue.

Last week, Marriott International was the first of the big hotel chains to report first-quarter results, announcing it had lost $23 million.

Despite dismal first-quarter results, both companies indicated the industry may have hit bottom.

"It’s too early to say fundamentals are improving," Starwood CEO Frits van Paaschen said. "But it seems we are no longer in a freefall."

Nonetheless, van Paaschen said Starwood was operating with the assumption that the recession is showing "no signs of ending just yet," despite some encouraging signs.

"RevPAR (revenue per available room) will continue to be a challenge as rates and occupancy continue to be under pressure," he said.

Likewise, Marriott Chief Financial Officer Arne Sorenson said last week that declines in hotel demand may be starting to stabilize, although he expects room rates to remain weak.

Starwood also said it was difficult to estimate the impact the swine flu outbreak would have on second-quarter earnings, although the company said, "We know that events like this have no long-term impact on our business."