Extended Stay America Announces Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2013 Results; Q4 RevPAR Up 5.7%

Consolidated and Combined Full Year 2013 Highlights Compared to 2012

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1 See “Disclosure Regarding Non-GAAP Financial Measures” herein for a reconciliation of the non-GAAP measures included herein (i.e., Adjusted EBITDA and hotel operating margin). 

2 Source: Medallia 2013 report 

3 Source: Business Travel News - 2013 Hotel Chain Survey, October 14, 2013. Mid-price extended stay category

Extended Stay America’s Chief Executive Officer, Jim Donald commented, “We are proud of our strong results in 2013, particularly our 10.2% RevPAR growth and the resultant strong operating margin flow through as evidenced by a 19.2% increase in Adjusted EBITDA year over year. Most importantly, we have laid the foundation for our vision of becoming a leading brand in the lodging industry. We are focused on delivering great service and superior value to our guests and will continue in the coming years to build upon the progress we made this past year.

“Our revenue growth, while favorable, was restrained due to the limitations of our current revenue management capabilities pending the roll-out of our new system, coupled with renovation displacements and weather. These factors restricted growth in the fourth quarter of 2013 and the first quarter of 2014. As we continue our efforts to transform the Company, we are confident about our ability to seize upon the many opportunities ahead. With our strong operating metrics, the benefit of the completed Platinum renovation packages at over 50% of our Extended Stay America hotels, and the implementation of service and revenue initiatives, we expect 2014 will be another year of progress for Extended Stay America as we build upon our successes delivering an improved product for our customers and strong returns for our shareholders.”

Financial and Operating Results

Revenue for the three months ended December 31, 2013 increased 7.3% over the comparable period in 2012 to $268.8 million and included a net benefit of $5.5 million, or approximately 2.2%, from the Company’s acquisition of 17 hotels in mid-December 2012. Revenue results for the quarter were sequentially affected relative to prior quarters due to comparisons with periods which included renovations, displacement from new renovations and Hurricane Sandy’s positive impact on the Company’s 2012 results.

For the twelve months ended December 31, 2013, revenue increased 12.0% over the comparable period in 2012 to $1,132.8 million and included $26.5 million, or approximately 2.6%, net benefit derived from the 2012 acquisition described above.

Revenue per available room (“RevPAR”) for the three months ended December 31, 2013 increased 5.7% over the comparable period in 2012, driven by an increase in average daily rate (“ADR”) of 4.5% and an increase in occupancy to 70.5% as compared to 69.6% in the comparable period in 2012. ADR growth was driven primarily by a combination of price increases and a shift in customer mix toward higher profit generating guests.

For the twelve months ended December 31, 2013, RevPAR increased 10.2% over the comparable period in 2012, driven by an increase in ADR of 8.8% and a 90 basis point increase in occupancy to 74.2% from 73.3%.

Hotel operating margin for the three months ended December 31, 2013 increased approximately 90 basis points over the comparable period in 2012 to 51.0%. Results for the quarter include additional costs of $1.5 million associated with the completed company-wide roll-out of “grab-and-go” breakfast, or approximately 55 basis points. Despite the costs associated with this amenity and certain other operating expenses associated with service enhancements, the Company was able to drive margin expansion. Operating margin flow-through, defined as the change in hotel operating profit divided by the change in total room and other hotel revenues, was approximately 61.7%.

For the twelve months ended December 31, 2013, hotel operating margin increased 170 basis points over the comparable period in 2012 to 52.5%. Results on a twelve month basis include additional costs associated with the roll-out of grab-and-go breakfast of $8.7 million, or approximately 80 basis points, as well as cost increases in other hotel operating expenses. Operating margin flow-through was approximately 65.6%.

Net loss for the three months ended December 31, 2013 was $15.4 million, compared to a net loss of $33.0 million in the comparable period in 2012. Results for the fourth quarter of 2013 included $25.2 million of write-off of non-cash deferred financing costs and prepayment penalties associated with the repayment of a portion of mezzanine debt as well as $16.8 million of non-cash equity-based compensation and $5.9 million of other costs related to the IPO.

Net income was $82.7 million for the twelve months ended December 31, 2013, compared to $22.3 million in the comparable period in 2012.

Adjusted EBITDA for the three months ended December 31, 2013, increased $14.6 million to $120.5 million, representing a 13.8% increase over the comparable period in 2012. For the twelve months ended December 31, 2013, Adjusted EBITDA increased $83.7 million to $518.6 million, representing an increase of 19.2%.

Capital

The Company repaid $715.0 million of its mezzanine debt in the fourth quarter and as of December 31, 2013 the Company had $2.52 billion of Mortgage debt (aggregate interest rate of 3.7%) and $365 million of Mezzanine debt (aggregate interest rate of 9.4%), $20 million in borrowings under its ESH Hospitality, Inc. revolving credit facility and unrestricted cash on hand of $60.5 million. The Company’s credit facilities and cash flow from operations are expected to be sufficient to meet working capital needs, debt service, planned capital expenditures and dividends for the foreseeable future.

The Company invested $67.4 million into capital expenditures for its hotel portfolio during the fourth quarter of 2013, which includes capital renovations, regular maintenance and information technology projects. The Company began a renovation phase in the fourth quarter of 2013 of over 90 hotels, twice the size of earlier phases. This renovation phase is anticipated to be completed at the end of the first quarter of 2014. Additionally, as of December 31, 2013, the Company acquired its remaining two managed properties for approximately $16.5 million and as of year-end owns 684 properties. For the full-year, capital expenditures including the acquisition costs were $196.6 million.

Peter Crage, Chief Financial Officer, stated, “We continue to drive strong free cash flow growth and the repayment of $715 million in mezzanine debt in the fourth quarter using IPO proceeds and cash on hand will reduce our annualized debt service needs by approximately $68 million and further strengthen our cash flow position in the future. We expect to generate significant free cash flow in the future and our capital structure provides us with substantial operating flexibility positioning us well for 2014 and beyond.”

Dividend

The Company’s subsidiary, ESH Hospitality, Inc.’s Board of Directors has declared a cash dividend of $0.08 per share prorated for the fourth quarter 2013, payable to ESH Hospitality, Inc.’s Class A and Class B common shareholders. The dividend reflects the 49 days during the quarter after which the Company’s initial public offering was completed based on $0.15 per share for a full quarter. The dividend will be payable on March 26, 2014 to shareholders of record as of March 12, 2014.

Outlook 2014

The Company anticipates that for 2014:

• Total revenues are estimated to increase 7% to 10% to approximately $1,212 to $1,246 million;
• Depreciation and amortization of approximately $165 to $170 million;
• Interest expense of approximately $148 million, excluding the impact of any additional debt reduction;
• Effective tax rate is expected to range from 23% to 24%;
• Capital expenditures are expected to be in the range of $150 to $170 million for renovations, maintenance and information technology projects.

Disclosure Regarding Non-GAAP Financial Measures

EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA, hotel operating profit and hotel operating margin, which are detailed in the reconciliation tables that accompany this release, are used by the Company as supplemental performance measures. The Company believes these financial measures provide useful information to investors regarding our results of operations and allow investors to evaluate the ongoing operating performance of our hotels and facilitates comparisons between the Company and other lodging companies, hotel owners and other capital-intensive companies. EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA, hotel operating profit and hotel operating margin are not recognized terms under GAAP. Because certain companies do not calculate EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA, hotel operating profit and hotel operating margin in the same way and certain other companies may not perform such calculations, those measures as used by other companies may not be consistent with the way the Company calculates such measures and should not be considered as alternative measures of operating profit or net income. The Company’s presentation of EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA, hotel operating profit and hotel operating margin does not replace the presentation of the Company’s financial results in accordance with GAAP. 

To view all tables and supplemental documents corresponding with this release please visit: http://www.aboutstay.com/CorporateProfile.aspx?iid=4409177