MeriStar Hospitality to Hold Fourth-Quarter Earnings Call on
February 16
biz.yahoo.com
Thursday January 27, 9:01 am ET
Announces Preliminary Guidance for 2005
ARLINGTON, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 27, 2005--MeriStar Hospitality Corporation), one of the nation's largest hotel real estate investment trusts (REIT), today announced that it will release its fourth quarter and full-year 2004 financial results on Wednesday, February 16, before the market opens. Later that morning, management will hold a conference call to discuss those results. The company also announced preliminary financial guidance for 2005.
2005 Guidance
The company anticipates RevPAR (revenue per available room) to increase between 7.5 percent and 8.5 percent for the full year, with margins estimated to improve by approximately 100 to 150 basis points.
Additionally, the company estimates adjusted EBITDA for 2005 of $188 million to $194 million. Adjusted FFO (funds from operations) is projected to be $51 million to $57 million, or $0.57 to $0.63 per diluted share. Net loss is estimated to be $35 million to $41 million, or $0.40 to $0.47 per diluted share.
"We completed approximately $125 million in renovations in 2004, including a significant amount related to public areas of our hotels," said Paul W. Whetsell, chairman and CEO. "We are beginning to realize the anticipated benefits of our renovation program and will invest an additional $85 million approximately, excluding hurricane recovery costs, in 2005, primarily in room renovations. These projects will be done in phases and carried out during seasonally slower periods."
Whetsell stated that restorations are continuing at the hotels significantly damaged by the hurricanes that struck Florida this past fall. "As a result, quarterly earnings may be impacted due to the timing of business interruption insurance payments. However, we are comfortable with the overall projections.
"In addition to the benefits of our renovation program, we are beginning to see the positive impact of the repositioning of our property portfolio. Our asset disposition program is substantially completed, although we will continue to prudently evaluate our portfolio for opportunities to replace lower yielding assets. We are seeing continued signs of strength in the marketplace and feel the company is well positioned to benefit from the positive outlook for the economy and hotel industry in 2005."
Earnings Conference Call
The February 16 conference call to discuss fourth quarter and full-year 2004 results will begin at 10 a.m. ET and will be hosted by Paul Whetsell and Chief Financial Officer Donald Olinger. Stockholders and other interested parties may listen to a simultaneous webcast of the conference call on the Internet by logging onto MeriStar's Web site, meristar.com, or streetevents.com, or may call (800) 218-9073, reference number 11023031. International investors may call (303) 262-2127. A recording of the call will be available by telephone until midnight on Wednesday, February 23, by dialing (800) 405-2236, reference number 11023031.
A replay of the conference call will be posted on MeriStar's Web site. |
