Hyatt Hotels Corp.'s second-quarter net profit was down
24.6% from last year, in part due to an impairment charge it took against its minority
investment in the home-sharing business Oasis.
The company reported net income of $77 million on revenue of
$1.13 billion, compared with income of $103 million in the same period last
year.
The results included a $22 million impairment charge against Oasis,
which Hyatt CFO Pat Grismer said has "underperformed expectations."
Similarly, AccorHotels last week reported a $288 million
write-off against investments in the alternative lodging company Onefinestay
and the concierge services business John Paul.
Hyatt said its other results were solid, driven by 4% growth
in revenue per available room (RevPAR), a 7.4 increase in rooms and 13% growth
in management and franchise fees.
"Disciplined execution of our long-term growth strategy
continues to drive strong operating results and new hotel openings, sustaining
solid earnings growth and meaningful shareholder capital returns as we pivot to
an asset-lighter business model," CEO Mark Hoplamazian said in statement
to investors. "Based on current booking trends, we expect a solid finish
to 2018 and have raised our guidance accordingly."
Net income for the full year is expected to be approximately
$508 million to $550 million, up from previous expectations of $495 million to
$553 million. RevPAR is expected to increase approximately 3% to 4% compared to
previous guidance of 2% to 3.5%.
The company said it expects to return approximately $800
million to shareholders, up from a previous expectation of at least $700 million,
through a combination of share repurchases and cash dividends on its common
stock.