Starwood Hotels & Resorts’ vacation-ownership division,
which it plans to spin off, will be renamed Vistana Signature Experiences,
according to a registration statement with the Securities and Exchange
Commission.
The new name comes from Orlando’s Vistana Resort, which
opened in 1980 and was the first property of the vacation-rental company
Starwood would acquire in 1999 and rename Starwood Vacation Ownership.
The spinoff is scheduled by year’s end in the form of stock
distribution to Starwood Hotels shareholders. Vistana will have 19 resorts and
three fractional residences as well as “additional hotel asset inventory
expected to be transferred,” Starwood said.
Last year, revenue for Starwood Vacation Ownership was $674
million, a 27% decline from a year earlier. The division’s operating income
fell 55%, to $177 million.
Marriott International spun off its vacation-ownership
division in November 2011. Marriott Vacations Worldwide’s share price has
quadrupled since then.