Choice Hotels Reports Full-Year 2007 Diluted EPS of $1.70; Domestic Unit Growth of 5.6%
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Choice Hotels Reports Full-Year 2007 Diluted EPS of $1.70; Domestic Unit Growth of 5.6%
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Category: Worldwide -
This is a press release selected by our editorial committee and published online for free on 2008-02-13
New Domestic Hotel Franchise Contracts Up 7% To A Record 770 For Full-Year 2007
Choice Hotels International, Inc., (NYSE: CHH) today reported the following highlights for the fourth quarter and full-year 2007:
-- Diluted earnings per share ("EPS") for full-year 2007 were $1.70
compared to $1.68 for full-year 2006. Diluted EPS for fourth quarter
2007 were $0.44, a 19% increase compared to $0.37 for the same period
in 2006. Full-year 2007 results include termination benefits expense
totaling $3.7 million (approximately $0.04 diluted EPS) resulting from
previously announced separations of certain executive officers.
-- Adjusted diluted EPS for full-year 2007 were $1.70, a 14% increase
compared to adjusted diluted EPS of $1.49 for full-year 2006. Adjusted
diluted EPS for fourth quarter 2007 were $0.44, a 22% increase compared
to adjusted diluted EPS of $0.36 for the same period of 2006. Adjusted
diluted earnings per share exclude reductions of income tax expense
related to reversal of income tax contingency provisions of
approximately $0.01 and $0.19 per share for the fourth quarter and
full-year 2006, respectively.
-- Operating income increased 11% to $185.2 million for full-year 2007,
compared to $166.6 million in the same period of the prior year.
Operating income for fourth quarter 2007 increased 21% to $48.1 million
compared to $39.9 million for fourth quarter 2006.
-- Earnings before interest, taxes and depreciation ("EBITDA") for
full-year 2007 increased 10% to $193.8 million from $176.3 million in
2006. EBITDA for fourth quarter 2007 was $50.3 million, an increase of
19% compared to $42.3 million for fourth quarter 2006.
-- Franchising revenues and total revenues increased 12% and 14%,
respectively for full-year 2007 compared to the same period in 2006.
Franchising revenues increased 14% and total revenues increased 19% for
fourth quarter 2007 compared to the same period of 2006.
-- Franchising margins for full-year 2007 were 62.5% compared to 63.1% for
the same period of 2006. Franchising margins for full-year 2007 reflect
the impact of $3.7 million of termination benefits for certain
executive officers and the commencement of direct franchising
operations in continental Europe.
-- Domestic unit growth increased 5.6 percent for full-year 2007.
-- Domestic system-wide revenue per available room (RevPAR) increased 4.0%
for full-year 2007 and 4.7% for fourth quarter 2007 compared to the
same periods in 2006. Domestic RevPAR for the company's mid-scale
without food and beverage brands (Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites and Sleep
Inn), which represent approximately half of the company's domestic
rooms online, increased 5.2% for both full-year and fourth quarter
2007.
-- New domestic hotel franchise contracts for full-year 2007 increased 7%
to a record 770. Fourth quarter new domestic hotel franchise contracts
increased 13% to 301 compared to fourth quarter 2006.
-- The number of domestic hotels under construction, awaiting conversion
or approved for development increased 17% to 1,004 hotels representing
79,342 rooms; the worldwide pipeline increased 18% to 1,093 hotels
representing 87,982 rooms.
"2007 was another very strong year for the company, as we continued to successfully execute our strategy of profitably growing our franchise system and domestic market share of branded hotel rooms," said Charles A. Ledsinger, Jr., vice chairman and chief executive officer. "We achieved another record year for new domestic hotel franchise contract sales, which highlights our ability to attract owners to our family of ten powerful brands by leveraging our size, scale, and distribution to deliver guests and create opportunities for our franchisees to achieve exceptional returns on their investment."
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